The Dawning
by SummersSixEcho
Summary: [Sequel to The Gloaming] It's been a little over a week since Danny's not-so-pleasant visit to Vlad's lab, but the ghost kid senses something's up. Even after the new truce with Valerie, there are still a couple of loose ends and new threats, which could mean the start of another headache.
1. Prologue: Beginning

**Notes:**

Hey, there. Thank you for deciding to check this story out. This is the sequel for a previous story called "The Gloaming" so there are several things that won't make sense unless you've read that one.

This one will be narrated in Danny's point of view in present tense. For the record, season three **never** happens. However, throughout the story there will be references to various episodes of said season. If there's any major spoiler, though, I'll warn you beforehand. No particular pairing though it will hint at times at both D/S and D/V, savvy?

Oh! And here's a brief (and maybe kinda ambiguous) summary, of course:

**Summary: **A week has passed but Danny still can't get over what happened that hectic day with Vlad and Valerie. Even though things start looking good with the new truce between the Red Huntress and Phantom, the ghost boy isn't so sure that things are completely right. In fact, he has a feeling that something is about to happen. Could be the appearance of a new foe or just the aftermath of what happened a week ago. Either way, Danny is just about to find out what exactly is in store for him...

Anyway, I hope you like it. If you want a sneak peek of what might happen in future chapters, there's a drabble in my deviantart account, too.

(without spaces) www . deviantart deviation/52367864/

**Recap (and spoilers) from "The Gloaming": **Vlad sent Skulker to attack Danny and used an inverted version of the Plasmius Maximus on him, keeping him stuck in ghost mode at the same time Valerie believes Phantom did something to Danny. Valerie digs deeper into the Danny/Vlad rivalry and finds out more than she would've liked, their real identities included. Vlad traps Danny in his lab but the ghost kid is rescued by Valerie. Although Vlad is now aware she knows his secret, the Red Huntress doesn't tell Danny she knows about his alter ego, placing a truce with Phantom instead to keep a closer look to both sides of him.

**Disclaimer:** (applies for each and every chapter posted) _Danny Phantom_ belongs to Butch Hartman and Nickelodeon.**  
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**Prologue: Beginning**

For as long as I can remember, I've always been known as the clueless one of the bunch. _Any _bunch. Family, friends, and even enemies I've only met for two seconds, they've all called me "clueless" _so _many times that I've actually lost count.

And the funny thing about all this? I still have no _clue _why I'm so badly stuck with the label.

Yeah, sure, sometimes I miss the big picture or tend to ignore things that are practically obvious, but that's usually because I get easily distracted or have so many things in my head that I don't pay enough attention. I know that if I focus or at least stop goofing around, I can figure out almost anything.

So, once I stop thinking about how clueless people think I am, I'll probably figure out whatever's going on here. But, how can I start piecing this together when I really can't remember what I was doing less than a minute ago?

I feel like I've just woken up while sleepwalking or something. All I know for sure is that I was heading to the lab, which is where I "woke up", so I just go on and keep walking down the rest of the stairs. Maybe my ghost sense went off and I decided to check it out while I was only half awake. It isn't too farfetched. Nowadays I rarely sleep, what with the whole ghost-hunting biz and all that.

The Fenton Portal is open but barely lights the room, which should be my first _clue_ that something's not right. The place is eerily dark and silent, as if it came from one of those "Doomed Science" movies Sam made us watch the other night. Not that any of the eight flicks in the series was actually scary, but close enough to give me the creeps right now.

Wait… I think I remember something. I wasn't looking for a ghost down here; I was looking for my family.

"Mom? Dad?" No answer. Jazz isn't here, either.

I _think_ I already searched everywhere, or at least that's what my gut tells me. And if I've survived in this gig for as long as I have, it's because I know I can't ignore my instincts.

So, what now, my trustworthy instincts? Am I supposed to start looking in the Ghost Zone or something?

The lab suddenly gets very cold and I begin to shudder. The portal seems to be closed and, if there was any other dim light on, it sure went off by now. I can't see a thing, not even an inch from my own nose, but I'm pretty sure my ghost sense went off just a second ago.

"Well, well, well…"

The voice sends chills down my spine and I know _exactly_ what creep it belongs to.

"You came sooner than expected, little badger."

**Vlad.**

I gather my strength and grit my teeth as I glance around the room to find him, but, even as I change to ghost mode, I still can't adjust my eyes completely to the darkness. "Where are they?" I try to sound more secure than I actually feel, but deep down I know Plasmius won't buy it, which doesn't put me at much ease.

It's not because of all his powers or how many years of experience he has. The scary thing about him is how good he can get into my head and how dangerous his games can be. Aside of his ghostly abilities, he knows how to make strategies and manipulate things to go his way, one way or another.

His glowing red eyes suddenly appear in front of me and I involuntarily take a step back. He smiles smugly like he usually does. "The question is, Daniel," I hear his poisonous voice hissing close, "do you know where you are?"

Before I can say anything else –threat, witty banter, or whatever-, some sort of wires snake in my direction and grab my wrists and ankles, shocking me as I struggle to get free. I try to go intangible, charge a blast, and even use those freezing powers I recently began to develop, but it's no use! I try with every ounce of strength to pull free from these… these _chains_, but I just can't stand the pain. The intensity of the shocks increases and I can hardly even think straight. It hurts **so** much that I can't hold back a scream.

Oh no. Not just any scream.

Green waves of energy shake the ground as I release my Ghostly Wail. Shouldn't I be changing back by now? I don't even have that much energy left. It won't stop and it's tearing me apart to use that much power, like it rips right through me and takes the life out of me. I suddenly notice that maybe I wasn't completely off with that metaphor: somehow, my human half is being forced out of me!

The Fenton part of me grunts in pain as he falls to the floor. The wail stops immediately and we just stare at each other. I can see in his eyes a mixture of confusion and fear, but also… _emptiness_. I don't know how to explain it but I know I feel the same. I feel so… incomplete.

A pink glow lights up the room, making me close my eyes for a moment to avoid the sudden brightness. At first I thought it was one of Vlad's blasts, but I think it was some sort of portal or something. The first thing I notice is that the human me is gone; I'm just the ghost left behind. I then realize I'm no longer chained or in the lab, either. It looks more like some sort of maze.

Behind me there's nothing but a dead end; above me, a green shield. That doesn't really leave me with that much of a choice, which I guess is a good thing in this case. At least I know in what direction to go, so I just float forward and hope I can find a way out of here.

Not two corners away from where I started, I can hear someone singing. It can't be far from here and, since I don't really know where I'm heading, I decide to find the source of its sound.

I try not to think about my missing human half or the fact that I officially have no clue of what the heck is going on. As soon as I'm out of here, I'll have the chance to freak out for as long as I want to. So I do what I often do and distract myself with something else, like with a certain "song" I can hear more clearly now.

"…What are little ghosts made of, made of?

What are little ghosts made of?

Evil and slime, to give a hard time;

That's what little ghosts are made of…"

The voice is sweet, maybe a little _too_ sweet. It sounds familiar but I'm not sure if I should be comforted or not. That's when I reach a corner where I see Valerie sitting in a table, wearing a pink dress that kinda makes her look like a doll. But what is she doing here and… like _this_?

Duh. Of course.

She found out Vlad's secret and, if he's behind this, he'll probably use any chance he can get to play games with her, too. Though I still don't know what kind of trick this is exactly. Maybe I can snap her out of her trance or something.

I walk to her side as she starts pouring some tea into a cup in front of her, but she doesn't turn to see me.

"Would you like to have some tea, Danny?" without looking up, Valerie asks in an extremely sugary voice, one I've never heard her use before, which is all levels of creepy given how she tends to _yell_ at me when I'm in Phantom mode. And since when did she start calling me by my first name?

I just stare at her blankly for a moment and I hesitate to say something, but two voices beat me to it. "Yes, please," they cheerfully reply in unison. I look at them and see… **me**. Both my ghost and my human half are sitting in front of Valerie looking unfazed. I just gape as they all smile and drink from their cups. Seriously, it takes all I have to keep myself from screaming.

Ok, Vlad's definitely behind this. Those _have_ to be clones, robots or something of the like. If they're not- if they're the real deal-, then what am **I** supposed to be? I swear I'm really sick of all these mind games and-

"Wait until you try these!" another voice announces to the crowd and interrupts my thoughts. I warily look at the new "guest" as he appears out of nowhere, holding a plate full of cookies and sitting next to Val.

What is _Skulker_ doing here?

It's more than official: I'm seriously losing my mind. None of this makes any sense! I just know I gotta get out of here, and I definitely need to find some answers.

I take a shaky step back but I end up bumping into someone. I try to turn around to see who it is, but the one behind me suddenly holds me in a bone-crushing hug. "FRIEEEND!"

"GYAAAAAAH- OOF!"

Ow. Did Klemper toss me to the ground or something?

As I rub the side of my head, I blink several times and stare at my surroundings: blue walls adorned with space shuttles and Dumpty Humpty posters; an open closet with clothes flooding out of it; an old bag of lime and vinegar chips, next to a computer and a mess of papers on my desk. Yup, I fell off my bed and woke up from a really freaky dream. Again.

I stand up and groan when I look at the time: two in the morning. It figures that when I finally manage to sleep early, thanks to some miraculous lack of ghostly activity, I still can't get some rest.

With a sigh, I go to the bathroom to wash the sweat off my face. Thankfully, Jazz didn't wake up this time. Otherwise she would probably try to do another late night psychoanalysis or something. And I'm glad she didn't show up not only because she's usually overbearing; I just don't like dragging her too much into my problems.

I turn on the bathroom's light and just let the water run through my fingers once I reach the sink. I can't believe I'm still having that dream. It's been over a week since the whole mess with Valerie and Vlad happened, but I can still feel the same pain I felt whenever I was shocked in that… containment thing. I still can feel uneasy around Val or distressed because I can't change back to human. But it's not just that.

I've had my share of nightmares every now and then. The most frightening ones are always about my future, especially the explosion at the Nasty Burger. Those usually make me feel hopeless and defeated, sometimes even with a lot of self-loathing; but then I remember my promise and I know that I won't let any of that happen. So, even if it still scares the heck out of me, it just makes me more determined to keep my word when I wake up. It serves me as a reminder of why I keep fighting.

But the feeling I get from this new recurring nightmare is not the same.

It's not that I'm scared about the part of being captured and tested on. Sure, I gotta admit I freaked out and couldn't get a good night's sleep for a couple of days after the whole cloning thing. So, going through Vlad's crazy experimenting twice in less than six months isn't exactly the equivalent of fun. Still, that's not it.

What scares me is the growing _feeling_ that something's still wrong, that I'm really missing something important, and not because I'm clueless or anything. I don't know if it's because of Vlad, Valerie, or both, but I just can't shake that weird sensation that something's about to happen.

Man, look at me... I'm pale and covered in sweat over some stupid dream. And I'll keep coming every night here to look at myself in the mirror, trying to wash everything away with some cold water against my face. I'll try to go to sleep and then I'll pretend it's all good and dandy in the morning. Once again, it'll all be all right in the world of Danny Fenton, the guy who risks his neck every day by going toe-to-toe against some pretty nasty ghosts, but who can't shake off a simple _feeling_. I guess I'll be stuck in that routine until it wears off or _something_ really happens.

Oh, great. I should know to keep even my thoughts quiet: my ghost sense just went off. My night sure is complete now. Note to self: don't provoke the forces of karma with inner monologues.

At least it's some distraction, I guess. I don't bother with a battle cry this time since I'm not really in the mood, so I just change. It's time for Danny Phantom to save the day, again, and lose a night of sleep. Again.

Ok, let's see. There's some noise coming from the roof, so I guess that narrows my search for whatever ghost decided to attack tonight. I turn intangible and head to the Ops Center, where I'll be able to watch the ghost and get some handy backup in case it's needed.

The noise gets louder as I reach the Ops Center. I can't see the ghost in the shadows, but it looks like he's just trashing the roof, maybe to get my attention, though my ghost sense would've been enough to do the trick.

I need get a closer peek to see who or what it is, so I turn invisible and float outside. It's probably the Box Ghost looking for some crates or something. Or maybe it's Technus trying to hack our house again. Or maybe-

"Whoa…" What the heck is that thing? Now that I'm closer -and got his attention by not staying quiet-, I can definitely tell this guy is new around here.

"Came for the view?" I lamely ask so I can find out what kind of ghost I'm dealing with. Well, the fact that he's some bulky skeleton dude with horns and bony wings kinda gives me an idea, but you can never be too sure. That doesn't mean I shouldn't prepare a blast in my hand, though.

The demonic ghost –or ghostly demon or whatever- laughs and then stares at me with his glowing red eyes, which is usually never good. "Ah, excuse my glee, but I really couldn't wait to get this operation started," he exclaims.

Now two things cross my mind: One, I'm not so sure I want to find out what exactly he means by that. And two, shouldn't his voice sound… different? I mean... he has the whole otherworldly thing going on for him, with the bones, wings, horns, and hooves (Did I already mention he looks like he's half goat or something?). He's even wearing some sort of armor adorned with black skulls. You'd at least expect some deep and eerie voice to match all that. Instead, he sounds more like some super villain from a Saturday morning cartoon.

But his voice should be the least of my worries. Concerned about what he said, I charge my blast to its full power and fire at him. "Sorry, pal, but you're going to have to get in line if you want to start whatever evil plan you have in mind." The ectoblast hits him but his chest armor seems to have taken most of the hit, so the ghost recovers quickly.

"No, I'm the one who's sorry," the demon or whatever it is replies while he throws a bomb of some sort with—wait a minute, sleeping gas? "See? You apparently mistook me for someone who _wanted_ to fight."

"Who—what… _are_ you?" I manage to ask, but I can't keep myself awake.

I can hardly hear him now as I fall from where I'm floating and begin to cough. He says something like 'zork', or 'xorkin', or 'horkiz', or… I don't know. I can't focus on what he's saying anymore. He's probably just going on about some evil scheme or whatnot and how I— ugh… my head is killing me. Sleep's starting to sound really good about now. Eyes getting heavy. Can't—

Gotta… get… h…e...l…p…

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Ugh, I passed out, didn't I? I can't believe I passed out in the middle of a fight. Ok, maybe I can believe it and it does happen kinda often. Still, the sun is up already, which means that I was unconscious for at least four hours. I've never been out for so long before, except maybe that one time... Ugh, my arm itches.

I'm still on the roof but thankfully not in ghost mode. I'm still wearing the same PJs I wore last night. Well, that sure is a relief. I wouldn't want to have a repeat of what happened with Skulker and the inverted version of the Plasmius Maximus. That one turned out to be a complete mess.

I gotta find ASAP this "Horkiz" ghost or whatever he said he was. He probably just wanted me out of the way, but I'll have to ask Sam and Tucker to help me find out more about this flying-demon-goat guy. Hopefully he didn't do anything incredibly harmful while I was out.

Oh, man… what time is it? I should probably get ready for school, if I'm not too late already. I could still use the aerial route to get there fast, but I don't want to risk being seen by Valerie on my way to school. Even if we have some sort of truce, the only way I'll make sure to keep it is if I earn her trust. Flying around Casper High when there's no threat in sight or even by making her suspicious of the Fenton-Phantom connection won't help in that cause.

Valerie… another piece in the puzzle that is my life.

Uh-oh… I hear the door leading to the roof open with a bang. No time to turn invisible!

"I swear that if another ghost took—Danny!" Mom exclaims as she runs to my side and knocks the wind out of me with a hug. "We've been looking for you all over the house! What were you doing up here?"

Man, she looks more concerned –or even relieved- than angry. And there's even an ectogun in her hand, so she was definitely expecting to find trouble. Can't blame her, though. After believing Skulker kidnapped me and seeing how injured I supposedly ended up because of him, she and Dad have been keeping a closer eye on me, not to mention they've become more vicious with their ghost hunting.

I should know firsthand with the way they've been chasing "the ghost kid" lately, who just happens to be me.

She releases me from her embrace and looks me in the eye expecting an answer. I can see the worry and motherly love in her look, which always makes it ten times harder to lie to her, but I know I have no choice.

Well, _technically_ I do, but that's beside the point. It's not like I'm going to reveal my secret just like that. At least not until I'm ready and I know _they're_ ready.

Time for lame excuse number 1,582… "I, uh, couldn't sleep last night and I… dozed off watching the stars out here?" And please believe me because I'm already tired and don't want to come up with any other excuse?

Mom just blinks and frowns for a moment, but then she smiles knowingly. "I think I know _exactly_ what's going on here."

Uh-oh. I know I didn't sound too convincing, but she can't possibly have figured it out. Which means…

"Oh, honey, I know how much you must want to overcome your fears, to put on a brave face and do daring things to forget what happened a week ago." Yeah, just what I thought. If she only knew… "But you can't be so reckless, Danny. Who knows what kind of malevolent and putrid ghost might show up while you're out here on your own?" Trust me, you'd be surprised.

All I can do is pout and try to look ashamed to go on with her story. "Sorry, mom, I'll try to be more careful next time."

She sighs as she puts a hand on my shoulder and steers me inside the house. "We'll talk about this later. Right now you should hurry up and get ready for school. You can't afford to be late again."

Well, at least she didn't suspect anything. Sometimes I just can't believe how much nonsense I've got dancing right in front of them and they still don't notice a thing.

And they say I'm the clueless one…


	2. Chapter 1: Into Consideration

_Hi, in case anyone is still reading this, I decided to give some closure to some old projects, including this story._

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**Chapter 1: Into Consideration**

Ever since I got my ghost powers and figured out that accidentally turning the seats intangible might not go well on my records, I've avoided the school bus like a plague. Even afterwards, when I could finally control my abilities, the idea of riding the "yellow menace" didn't seem as appealing as flying freely above town. No traffic, no cramming, no bullying, and no motion sickness. I had it really good, enjoying all the peace and quiet in one of the few moments I had to myself.

But since I made a truce with a certain trigger-happy ghost huntress, I think flying to school is kinda out of the question, or at least for a while. And now that my parents are overreacting a little with my safety after last week's attack, guess what's my only choice left? Yup, the dreaded school bus.

So that's how I ended up here this morning, surrounded by incessant chattering, lack of personal space, flying school supplies, and a very distinctive –and sort of putrid—smell.

Luckily, I have two of the most supportive friends in all the infinite number of realms there are.

"So, what part of '_don't just jump into action without knowing what you're dealing with_' did you happen to miss from your last trip to Wisconsin?"

Okay, so maybe Sam has her own way of wording her support. I know she freaked out with everything that happened recently. Even worse when she found out Val and I made a truce. 'I just don't trust her,' she insisted, but sometimes I get the feeling there's more into that.

"It wasn't like that," I begin to defend myself as I try to continue relaying last night's attack. "I swear I tried to be as careful as possible, but it's not like I was going to let him get away with whatever evil scheme he had under his sleeve."

"Sorry to point it out, dude," Tucker says without moving his gaze from his PDA, "but, if you passed out, he probably got away with his plan."

I shoot him a glare but he doesn't even notice. "Well, at least not without a fight."

"I thought you said you barely hit him once," he retorts while finally looking up.

"That's besides the point, Tucker," Sam whispers sharply, reminding us to keep the conversation more private. I guess we still have to get used to that again. "Anyway, we could start searching for news of any weird incidents going on in the last couple of days."

"Sam, you _do _know we live in Amity Park, right? Home of everything strange, dark, and ghostly? That would be like searching for a needle in a haystack." Tucker does have a point...

"Well, it's not like we've got much to start from. Besides, whenever a new ghost shows up, they end up bringing along weirder news than usual. It's worth the shot."

Actually, I think we might have something to start from. Going back to last night's fight, I can't get the ghost's words out of my head. Something about '_getting this operation started'._ He said he didn't want to fight, even when his armor seemed to say otherwise. "Maybe I should try asking some of our allies in the Ghost Zone. Maybe Pandora knows something, considering the way this guy looked."

My friends look at each other worriedly. "Um, are you sure you want to go there so soon?" Tucker asks first.

"We don't even know if you're at your full strength yet, since you've somehow avoided any big confrontations lately," Sam adds.

"But that's the point: if none of the usual suspects are coming to this side of the portal, something big might be going on. Maybe that's what the whole "operation" is about. I can't just wait here with my arms crossed."

They seem to consider this possibility for a second, but I know they're still not convinced. I can't blame them either. They were also in danger last time I decided to go through the Ghost Zone to barge into Vlad's lab. I'm pretty sure that's not something any of us wants to repeat every week.

"Let's say we go to the Ghost Zone," Sam starts, and I'm not sure I'm liking the 'we' part, "we still need a plan. And maybe some sort of back-up."

Now I'm positive I don't like where this is going...

"Sam, most of our back-up is _in_ the Ghost Zone, remember?" I reply. "Even Danni has been staying with Frostbite's people."

Tuck shifts his gaze nervously. "Well, uh, what about Valerie?"

Sam looks dismayed. "I was thinking about Jazz. Valerie's not an option."

"Well, she could go with Phantom to the Ghost Zone, while the rest of us stays behind to watch their backs," Tucker adds with a small shrug, as if the idea was really that simple; it's not, trust me.

I mean... I've also considered getting Valerie involved in some of our usual ghostly activities. Nothing that could be too revealing: just ghost patrolling or some research with the hopes that she'll be able to trust me enough to invite her to the team.

The thing is, if Valerie and I start working together, the only way of getting her to trust me is being completely honest with her. I can't do that unless I tell her who I really am, which I can't do if she hates both my human _and_ ghostly guts. And since she already knows there's something going on between Fenton and Phantom, she probably just wants to see if both of my identities are really friends with no tricks involved. Because there's no way she knows my secret without her going all ballistic about it, right? I know how that went with Vlad.

"I don't want to get her involved yet, Tuck. I'll eventually have to, somehow, but I would have to come clean about the whole identity thing soon after. I'm not sure either of us is ready for that at the moment."

"You're not seriously considering telling her your secret, are you?" Sam questions still appalled.

Just before I can give her an honest answer, the bus stops right in front of Casper High. As soon as the doors open, we all get out as fast as we can. Sure, none of us are actually excited to go to class –except for Mikey, maybe-, but I know I wouldn't stand the nauseating ride another second either.

My friends and I silently decide to continue this conversation later. Even though the discussion is getting awkward, that's not really the reason to put it on hold...

"Hey, what's going on over there?" I cut the silence, genuinely surprised as a big crowd gathers at one side of the building.

"You didn't change the menu again, did you, Sam?" Tucker asks a bit wary.

"I'm short of getting banned from the cafeteria as it is," she says while rolling her eyes.

The three of us stare at all the commotion and start noticing balloons, a big tent, and a lot of noise. As we get closer, a huge sign stops us in our tracks.

"**Casper High's Ghost Awareness Week!"**

Just then, I see several stands showcasing books, videos, ghost-hunting equipment, and the like. Some people are handing out pamphlets while others seem to be explaining different kinds of ghostly facts, according to the headers above them.

At first glance, most banners seem to warn about ghosts and the dangers they represent. But somehow there's a small (and apparently improvised) recruitment table for Danny Phantom's Fan Club, and another one questioning if I'm a hero or a menace. Those two alone spell _disaster_.

I stare in shock and can't help feeling even more sickened than on the bus. "Tell me I'm having another really bad dream."

"If by 'bad dream' you mean having your parents totally embarrass you at school," Sam points at two figures running towards us from the school's front doors, "it might as well be a complete nightmare."

Oh, no, my parents? What are they doing here? Do they have something to do with this? Of _course_ the would...

"Hide me!" I yell in horror as I jump into a trashcan behind us.

"Oh, hi, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton! What brings you to Casper High?" Tuck lamely asks them.

From what little I can see, Mom looks a bit confused, although her expression's kinda hard to tell behind her red goggles. "Hi, kids. Have you seen Danny? I could've sworn he was standing right here with you just a second ago."

Sam steps in front of my hideout to keep me out of their view. "He really needed to get inside before class. To... study! For his... uh, pop quiz. In case there is one, of course."

"That's too bad," I hear my dad's voice dripping with disappointment. "All this planning the surprise and I didn't even get a chance to give him the special tour."

"Would you tell him we want to show him what this is all about?" mom asks. "They'll be probably taking you later to see the main conference, but we'd love to talk to him first."

"Sure, thing, Mrs. Fenton," is Sam's reply.

I hear their footsteps as they leave. "Danny, coast is clear," Sam whispers just in case.

"Thanks, guys." I climb out of the trashcan and dust myself off. I glance once again at the stands and watch as my parents disappear into the growing crowd. "They don't look like they're leaving the premises anytime soon, do they?"

"Not a chance," both reply in unison.

"Let's just hope they don't get too excited with the conference."

"Great. Thanks for reminding me, Tuck."

We avoid all the frenzy outside and continue our way into school... all while I'm silently wishing my invisibility could somehow become permanent.

* * *

There's no way out. The whole room is crowded, the doors are closed, and there's enough ghost-hunting equipment nearby to make even the Fright Knight flinch. Taking this into account, I can't use any of my ghost powers unless I want to start a small war in here. And if I attract any more attention as Danny Fenton, I might start something even worse.

In other words, yeah, I'm doomed.

"I know this is something completely different from what you kids are used to seeing at your own school, but we believe in the power of knowledge, which is why Casper High became the perfect place to start the Ghost Awareness Week!" Mom, who is sharing the stage with dad and three other "ghost experts", seems really excited as she continues her speech to everyone gathered in the auditorium. Most kids clap monotonously and don't seem particularly thrilled. "We are always looking for ways to be here to protect you, but since we can't be everywhere at once, we think giving you all the necessary information can be the key to keeping you safe from any ghost attack. So this week is all about staying alert and erasing any misconception you might still have about ghosts."

I sink into my seat trying to stay out of my parents' sight. I feel as if everyone's eyes were on me and every now and then I can hear a couple of snickers from Dash and his entourage, so I'm pretty sure there's no easy way of sneaking out of this place without getting noticed.

My friends try their best to cheer me up by pointing out that at least I'm not an only child, like them, so I'm not alone on this. I don't burst their bubble by reminding them that Jazz is actually well liked by everyone here and will never get shoved into her locker just for a jock's amusement.

As the torture continues, mom mentions something about having several conferences and workshops planned throughout the week, mostly aimed to give us all the basic information we need about what ghosts are, how they behave, and how to stay safe. She introduces the other three experts as Dr. Harvey James, Professor Dan Stantz, and Dr. Lydia Maitland. Apparently, they will be working with some of our teachers to combine this week's assignments with ghost-related work. As if I didn't have enough ghostly activities already...

Mom finishes her speech and it's dad's turn on the podium. He begins by clearing his throat and showing a very serious expression. "Amity Park has had its share of big ectoplasmic menaces throughout the last couple of months, including a couple of invasions that affected each and every one of us, not to mention how we almost had Christmas completely ruined by the darn ghost kid. Last week, though, we had a really close call that took our family by surprise." He shows a picture of me- Fenton me-, and I have to stop my embarrassment from turning me invisible in front of the whole school. "A couple of spooks threatened and attacked our son right outside of this very same building. He tried to fight back, but he was no match for the foul fiends who dared to target him. Fortunately, the red hunter girl saved Danny and brought him back home."

Valerie, who happens to be sitting just a couple of rows ahead of us, shifts uncomfortably in her seat. This is probably a very touchy topic for her, considering how she probably knows that I know she is that same hunter, but neither of us will talk about it. Wow, my head hurts just thinking about that idea alone...

"We don't want any of you to go through that again. That is why we'll cram all our ghostly knowledge into those young, impressionable heads of yours to get you ready for any kind of attack at your own school or neighborhood. In other words, I'll get to blabber on about ghosts and you'll get to see some really cool inventions!"

The clapping gets a bit more enthusiastic as dad ends his participation with a huge grin. If they all remember how we worked together to rescue our parents from Youngblood's pirate ship, they're probably starting to like the idea of this Ghost Awareness Week. It doesn't sound _that _bad, actually, unless this means having to defend myself from my own classmates. Considering how my luck has been going lately, I'll have to be extra careful with all this.

"Well, at least you'll get the week off around here, right?" Sam whispers while giving a small shrug.

"Let's hope," is all I can say.

Mr. Lacer thanks the guests and sends us all back to our classrooms, where we'll get started right away with the newly planned activities.

My friends and I head to our lockers to get our books for the next hour. With the hallway still crowded, we avoid talking about the implications this week will have on my alter ego's appearances and wordlessly agree to save it for lunch.

"So, you already met the other guys your parents invited, right?" Tucker asks instead.

I close my locker after taking out what I need and sigh. "Yeah, a couple of years ago dad dragged us to a convention where the three of them were giving a conference. They've kept in touch ever since and seem almost as enthusiastic about ghost research as my parents."

Sam gives me an incredulous and sort of worried look. "Are they any good, though?"

"As ghost hunters? Nah. They focus more on ghost psychology and some such nonsense. Jazz will probably geek out now that she's more interested in that stuff."

"Hey, Fen_tonked_," I hear Dash's distinct voice as he and the A-list kids walk in our direction. He immediately grabs my shirt and pulls me towards him menacingly. What now? "Thanks for totally ruining this week for everyone."

My friends and I look at each other confused. "I thought you were all excited about getting to see some cool ghost-hunting gear."

Paulina steps closer with a really disappointed expression. "Yeah, but that will mean we won't get to see the ghost boy at all. Your parents are totally against him. They always say they want to blast him to tiny pieces!"

"So, how is _that_ Danny's fault?" Sam asks annoyed while crossing her arms. Something tells me she's getting her sarcastic ammo ready for battle.

"If he hadn't been so puny and gotten kidnapped by some stupid ghost, his parents wouldn't be here in the first place," Dash answers while tightening his grip on my shirt.

"And since they want to hunt the ghost boy, he won't show up while they're around," Paulina continues.

I've always found it ironic how she can love one side of me and completely ignore or even hate my other half. Actually, that applies to Valerie too, just with opposite identities. I can't have it all, I guess.

"Well, it's not like the _ghost boy_ shows up just for your personal amusement," Sam replies, taking an aggressive stand.

"You're just jealous because he doesn't pay any attention to you!"

"Sure, it's not like you play 'damsel on distress' on purpose to get a better glimpse of him, _right_?"

Uh-oh...

"Are you saying I'm a fake?"

As Dash gets more interested in their fight, he loosens his grip a bit on my shirt and lets me go. This is my chance to get outta here, but I should probably break the girls' argument somehow before it gets out of proportion. And I really don't like the idea of Sam getting into trouble for defending me. In any case, it should definitely be the other way around after all the things she and Tucker have had to put up with since I got my powers.

I try to reach Sam and put a hand on her shoulder, but a loud whistle interrupts the discussion before I can do or say a thing.

We all turn to look at Valerie, who singlehandedly managed to snap everyone's attention. She sighs and approaches the small crowd, only giving me a quick glance as she does. "You're seriously fighting over a ghost? Don't you get it? We're constantly under attack at school, so we shouldn't just wait for someone else to save our butts. If we don't learn how to handle a ghost attack on our own, someone will end up seriously hurt one of these days."

Paulina scowls but doesn't say another word. Dash, on the other hand, seems offended by Val's words. "Hey, who says we can't defend ourselves? I even helped Danny Phantom once."

Oh, right, the Fenton Crammer incident. To be fair, he did help a lot, but I wouldn't say he's qualified to become Phantom's sidekick after that run-in with Skulker.

"Yeah, but would you be able to take on a ghost by yourself?" Val questions.

The bell rings but the tension doesn't fade. Dash narrows his eyes on me, using his trademark-intimidating attitude. "You're lucky your _girlfriends_ are here to defend you, _Fentina_," he mocks before turning around and heading to the classroom with the rest of his clique.

I know this is not the end of the discussion. It never is when it comes to Dash's jock displays. I'll just have to make sure I leave before he tries to use me as a public punching bag again.

Looking back to the spot where Val was standing, I notice she's already gone. Guess that answers Tucker's question about asking her to help Phantom with the newest ghost on the loose. Like I said, it's probably for the best right now. She obviously doesn't feel comfortable anymore near my human half. Jazz would probably suggest giving her some time to come to terms with everything that happened recently.

"So apparently only a part of you will have the week off," Sam says after a long silence while we walk hurriedly to our next class.

"Thanks for everything, back there, by the way" I answer instead, giving her a heartfelt smile. I've been careful not make my friends feel like I'm taking them for granted, especially after that time when my "cousin" came to town. Sometimes I get too distracted with whatever's going on at the moment, but that shouldn't be an excuse.

Sam seems to blush briefly, something she would never admit doing. "Yeah, well, it's, uh, getting late for class," she adds with a cute little smile. Not that she'll hear me calling her cute or anything, unless I want to have my butt kicked...

Is it me or did Tucker just whisper something like "clueless"?

* * *

"All right, everyone," Mr. Lancer begins with a dull tone, "today we will mix our English class with some ghostly literature interpretation, courtesy of Dr. Lydia Maitland."

Mr. Lancer doesn't look particularly thrilled about having Dr. Maitland in class. I don't know if it's because he doesn't really know her or because he doesn't like the idea of having these "experts" at school. Either way, most of my classmates look interested in the new visitor.

The woman standing now in front of the whole class is probably about my parents' age and kinda reminds me of Sam. She's pale, skinny, and has an overall gothic look that fits perfectly with her black hair and eyes. Also, unlike what some other "ghost experts" would use, she's wearing a black dress.

"Thank you, Mr. Lancer," she says with a slight accent in her voice. "The nature within a spirit can hide behind many different masks. They are in general portrayed as lonely post-mortem essences who roam this earth, aimlessly looking for something with which they can fulfill their true destiny or, as some might call it, to complete a pending business. Some hide behind anger, even though they are looking for a long-lost love. Others manifest as poltergeists that hide behind odd antics, even though they only want either company or solitude, depending the case. Today, we will analyze different interpretations of ghostly characters and we will describe what their purpose is. Since these purposes can also manifest through an obsession, you will learn today how to use this knowledge to identify the kind of entities you see every day."

So according to her, the Box Ghost is hiding behind a cardboard mask of "doom" and really wants, what, to open his own warehouse? I don't think most of the ghosts I've faced actually have a well-defined purpose. I mean, they have obsessions and they have plans at times, evil and whatnot, but those can't really be called after-life goals, right?

Dr. Maitland starts handing out copies of a worksheet, filled with several short stories, news, and excerpts related to haunted places, specters, and such.

If Danny Phantom's story appeared on these pages, what kind of obsession would everyone think I have? I don't do anything redundant and obvious like Technus, who focuses on electronic devices, or haunting the school cafeteria like the Lunch Lady. Since I'm only half ghost, will I ever have any kind of obsession at all?

I start looking through the instructions on the first page, but something I thought I'd be able to avoid happens: my ghost sense's going off. Here? Now? I panic and turn to look at my friends for some wordless advice. They shake their heads and shrug, probably just as lost as me. Should I go check it out or leave it to my parents?

A large cloud of smoke is seen outside, followed by a loud cackle. I can already recognize the sound of the annoying ghost behind it: Youngblood.

Ok, so leaving it to my parents is totally out of the question now. But if I fight that brat in front of them, they'll think I'm the one attacking.

Crud. Can this day get any worse?


	3. Chapter 2: Teaming Up

Hey, guys, thanks for keeping up with this story and for your support. I really appreciate it.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Teaming Up**

Whenever a ghost attacks at school it can get all kinds of ugly. Not only because I sometimes have to give embarrassing excuses to ditch a class. There's also the fear of doing more harm than good, or even having my identity completely exposed. Usually, though, it ends with me in detention, so I kinda brace myself for that whenever an attack starts.

With a prankster like Youngblood over there it won't be an exception.

Aside from the usual rhythm to this kind of fights, in which I go against a ghost, end up trashing some classroom, and get blamed for it as Danny Fenton, there's also the chance of my parents getting involved, probably with some of their _buddies_ tagging along, so I have to be more careful this time.

Dr. Maitland continues giving her explanation on today's work, but she can't keep the attention of the other kids in class for much longer when they actually notice there's a green-haired kid floating outside. They gape in shock, as it's usual whenever a ghost shows up, and complete the routine with the mandatory scream. "Aaaaaah! Ghost!" Nathan is the first to yell as he jumps from his seat, alerting anyone else who hadn't seen our annoying visitor. Well, everyone except for the two oblivious adults in our classroom.

"_A Beautiful Mind_, people! What in the world are you kids talking about?" Lancer demands loudly. It probably looks pretty weird to them, seeing how there are students wanting to get out of the room with no apparent threat nearby. You'd think they'd at _least_ be able to see the huge pirate ship floating outside.

"Danny, what are we going to do?" Sam whispers as she and Tucker get closer.

We hear Mr. Lancer yelling once more while he steps in front of the students, threatening everyone that if they don't get back to their seats there will be consequences. The annoying ghost punk notices all the commotion and flies into the room through the window, cackling while he watches everyone go against the wall.

"Oh, _man_! I've always wanted to get other kids into trouble with their teachers," he tells his parrot.

"Can we get this over with, already?" the parrot huffs annoyed while rolling his eyes. "We came looking for Danny Phantom, not to fool around with some idiotic kids."

They're looking for me? I turn to give Sam and Tucker a worried look. Fortunately, he hasn't seen me yet since my friends and I are crouching under a couple of desks. That should give us time to come up with something before he reveals my identity to my whole class.

"Dude, why don't you tell Lancer you'll go look for your parents? That way you get and alibi _and _Youngblood's attention?"

"Tuck's right," Sam adds. "You can lure him somewhere, minus the terrified audience, and if anyone sees him following you, they'll think it's just to stop you from getting help."

I weigh my options as I look at Youngblood making faces behind the teacher's back. "I guess I'll have to give it a try."

Trying to work as fast as I can, I run to the door and turn to face both adults. "I'll, uh, go get some help? Maybe my parents know what's going on." They stare at me but I don't wait for their permission as I head outside, giving Youngblood a pointed look on the way out. I just hope he gets the hint.

"What are you waiting for? Follow him!" I hear his parrot shout just before I bolt out of the classroom.

"Mr. Fenton, get back here!" I also hear Mr. Lancer yell, but I trust he won't run after me since he already has a lot in his hands with the bunch of freaked out teens in his class. Hopefully my friends will also cover for me, but I guess I should get ready for my daily dose of detention anyway. _Fantastic_.

I try not to use my powers to keep the alert to the minimum. Seeing how most of my parent's inventions are practically triggered by my ecto-signature, I feel safer at the moment doing this the old-fashioned way. I turn on a corner and head upstairs, aiming for the roof to meet Youngblood. As soon as I get there, I make sure there are no ghost hunters around at ground level, but I guess they're all in their assigned classrooms.

The brat catches up and I keep a confident stance with my arms crossed. "All right, Youngbutt, you wanted to see me?"

I know I'm in a slight disadvantage if I confront him as a human, but I can't risk being seen changing into my alter ego. Besides, I thought we were in more neutral terms after the last two times his parents "asked" me to babysit him. I know we both hated the idea at first, but after a while we managed to make it through his parents' outings without trying to kill each other.

Instead of an attack, though, the kid just puts his hands up, as if trying to calm me down. "Relax, Danny," he says with a smug chuckle. "I came to give you something."

I can't help but snort. "Yeah, right. You came to give me a hard time, I bet. You do know you already got me into trouble today, right?"

His parrot crosses his boney wings as he scoffs again. "See? I told you it was a waste of time. Can we please leave now?"

Youngblood turns to glare at his pal, who looks unfazed. I've seen those two get along in other circumstances and, even when they seem annoyed at each other most of the time, the truth is there's a strong friendship between them. Kinda like old bickering buddies, I guess.

He sighs and holds some sort of necklace on his hand. It's made of thread and has a very small pouch attached, no bigger than a penny. "This is an amulet my grandma gave me. It's supposed to keep bad things away from you," he says quietly and apparently a bit embarrassed.

I take it from his hand, still confused. "You came all the way over here to give me this? Why?" I really don't understand. I mean, forget 'neutral'... he's apparently being nice!

Youngblood turns to look at his parrot worriedly. "Dude, seriously? The Exterminator is looking for you! Everyone in the Ghost Zone is making bets and no one thinks you'll make it. I don't want to be stuck with Ember again as my baby-sitter!"

My stomach does a nasty flip. I was prepared for an attack, but not for a brutal punch in the gut with this sort of news. "The _Exterminator_?" I don't know what the heck he's talking about, but I don't really like the sound of it. This might be a wild guess, but... "Is he... is he by any chance a big, armored goat guy?"

His huge and alarmed eyes already give me the answer I need before he even says a thing. "Oh, no, you _saw_ him?"

"He's cursed! Let's get out of here!" his partner yells and, before I can do or say anything, they scream and rush to their pirate ship to leave through another huge cloud of smoke.

I stand there numbly, holding the necklace tight. Did that really just happen? Did he say I'm cursed? I know I attract a lot of bad luck every now and then, but _cursed_? This _has_ to be one of his twisted pranks. There's no way Youngblood would care if something happened to me, right?

But what if it's true? If that's the case, who or _what_ exactly is the Exterminator? Why would everyone be afraid of him? And why the hell would he be after me? I guess it would explain why there haven't been so many ghost attacks lately...

I should probably take this with a grain of salt. I shouldn't panic until I find out what's going on. At least now I have somewhere to start and, if the Ghost Zone knows about him well enough to be that scared, there might be a whole legend behind him. Sam is really good at finding that sort of things at her favorite bookstore, so I could really use her help. Still, I can't tell my friends all the details of what that brat said; they already have enough worries and I don't want them to deal with this right now. I'll have to play this casually, somehow.

Man, I really hope this is just a prank. I'll seriously get back at that punk if that's the case.

But as much as I want to kid myself... remember that _feeling_ I've been having, that something's about to happen? It just got ten times worse.

* * *

The rest of the day has gone as normally as it can in Casper High. I tried to convince my friends I'd tell them what happened with Youngblood once we're out of my parents' earshot. I told them I convinced him to go back to the Ghost Zone, but I already know they're sensing something's up. It kinda comes with the territory: after keeping so many secrets from the rest of the world, of course those who are closest to me will know if I'm lying or hiding something from them. Guess I'll have to worry about later, though. I don't want to think too much about it right now, either.

The good thing is I managed to avoid detention when I took my parents rushing to the classroom shortly after Youngblood's departure. Mr. Lancer wasn't too happy to have them around at all, but he admitted it helped calm everyone down, somehow. Dr. Maitland also said she had been able to sense something and tried to telepathically connect with the spirit that haunted the classroom. I tried to stop myself from laughing at her phony antics, but I guess she was just trying to reassure everyone they would be safe for the remainder of the class.

Of course, my "good luck" came to an end as soon we made it to Gym class.

Despite my ghost powers, my human abilities still don't compare to what I can do as Phantom. This I have known even before the whole incident with Dash and Skulker. Sure, I can use some of my powers without going ghost, but I don't have the same reflexes or the agility; it might have something to do with being lightweight, maybe. Still, that makes it even more embarrassing whenever I turn into a klutz in any of the physical activities Ms. Teslaff sets for us. The tough teacher is not alone for this class, though, since Professor Stantz decided to join us to apparently give some ghost-dodging pointers. That's where the current awkwardness began...

Now that he changed into clothes that are more fitting for the class, he looks like a camp counselor rather than a coach, but I guess he's not really used to working with kids our age. He looks slightly uncomfortable as he tries to give us his best plastic grin, but otherwise he's at least making a friendly effort to connect with the group.

"All right, kiddos, we're going to run some laps to get the adrenaline going," he begins excitedly. "And after that, we prepared an obstacle course for you to try out. You're probably wondering how that's related to the GAW*, and here's the fun part: we're making a drill to teach you how to escape from ghosts. Ain't that fun?"

"Fun? I'm guessing he hasn't even _seen_ a ghost, yet," Sam remarks dryly out of his earshot.

Ms. Teslaff blows her whistle and begins giving us orders. "Okay, get moving! Four laps, now! Fastest runner gets a reward."

My friends and I usually don't waste too much energy while doing laps since we're not really evaluated based on timing. But now that Teslaff promised a reward for the first one to finish, neither of my classmates wants to think what the punishment will be for the slowest one. That makes us all want to really hurry up for this one.

As we get half of the laps done, it becomes clear the jocks will be taking the lead along with the two most athletic girls in class: Sam and Valerie. You'd figure the cheerleaders would have just as much energy, but apparently they're more focused on keeping a steady pace without breaking a sweat. At the end of the "food chain", though, Tucker and I are tied with a couple of our geeky peers.

Breathing a little uneasy, I turn to cheer up my pal. "C'mon, Tucker, we can do it. Remember when we trained for that fitness test?"

He doesn't seem too happy to remember. "You mean when Sam motivated me with lies and deceit?"

"Well, yeah, but we made it through the test that time, right? We can still try harder."

Tucker stares in disbelief. "Are you kidding me?" He takes a second to shake his head in denial and we both manage to push even harder. In the end, we only pass two other tired classmates, which technically won't leave us in last place at least.

As we all try to catch our breath, we learn that Dash finished first, followed closely by Sam, the jocks, and Valerie.

"All right, Dash, since you beat all these wimps, you'll get to be a ghost in the obstacle course," Teslaff announces and the alarms in my head don't seem too comfortable with the idea. "You'll get to run after everyone and they'll have to find a way to get away from you."

Dash and Kwan share a high-five. "All right! That's like a 'get out of jail free' card for geek wailing!"

My friends and I cringe, along with probably half of the class, but Tucker speaks first. "When did we go from avoiding ghosts to running away from bullies?"

I shrug. "Is there a difference?"

Seriously, seeing how most of my enemies try to find creative ways to make my life miserable, it's not really that different from what Dash puts me through every day. Except I can actually fight back against Skulker without blowing my cover.

Professor Stantz takes a step forward and starts looking thoughtfully at all of us. "Oh-kaay, since a real-life situation might require helping out others, you'll be working with a partner. So... You!" He points at Sam, who looks uncomfortable with the situation. "You showed a lot of energy and strength, so you'll be working with someone less... _graceful_, so to speak. You," he exclaims while pointing at Mikey. "Please join this young lady on the first run."

As he and Teslaff randomly pair everyone up, like Tucker with Kwan or Paulina with Ashley, it's my turn to have a partner assigned. "Hey, kiddo! You're Jack's son, right?" our guest asks me without really expecting an answer. "I can see where you get your stamina from, ha! Just messin' with ya. You'll be working with... this lovely lady over here." He puts a hand on my teammate's shoulder and I have to hide my nervousness as soon as I realize a certain grudge-holding, trigger-happy girl and I will be stuck together for this routine.

Valerie cringes visibly and is clearly uncomfortable. I slowly walk towards her, already expecting a really awkward situation. "Hey, uh, Valerie," I wave while trying not to call her 'Val'. She almost chewed my head off last time I did that as Phantom. I'll take it easy as Fenton now since we haven't really had the chance to exchange more than two words lately.

"Oh, hi, Danny," she replies with a weak grin, apparently still a bit uneasy around me. I guess she's not exactly glad knowing there's some sort of friendship between her worst enemy and her klutzy friend, or that I know her secret, for that matter.

As we stand next to each other in awkward silence, we listen to the instructions for the obstacle course; nothing too complicated: just find the fastest and easiest way to dodge Dash, the "ghost", and make it to the finish line. Sam and Mikey are the first ones to give it a try. Everybody plays close attention to the first run to see how hard it will actually be. Sam has plenty of practice, though, taking the lead when needed and helping others out of trouble, so she tries to guide Mikey from behind his back, already knowing Dash will surely go after him first. They climb ropes, dodge balls from the jock, jump obstacles, crawl, run, and even create distractions to keep the "ghost" from tagging them. With her agility and Mikey's previous experiences with Dash, both are somehow able to barely make it to the end.

Both adults as well as most of the class congratulate Sam and Mikey for beating the star quarterback. As our cheers die down, it's the turn of Paulina and Ashley, who warn Dash to take it easy on them. His only reply is a playfully evil grin.

I don't pay any particular attention to this or the following teams. I already have a lot in my head right now with the newest ghost in town, not to mention my current situation with Valerie. I don't want to deal with the whole "cursed" thing right now, considering how I still have a lot of research to do, so I focus instead on how the heck this gym activity is supposed to work out if I'm paired up with Val.

It feels weird teaming up with her and not talking non-stop like we once used to. I can't even believe we almost went steady a couple of months ago and now she's barely giving me a glance. But I'm not sure I would be so trusting either if I found out one of my close friends has been hiding something so big from me. Man, and she doesn't even know the rest of it! I have to break the tension between us somehow, though.

"Shouldn't we be planning our strategy or something?" I ask her instead.

She raises an eyebrow and gives me a strange look. "What, you haven't tried running away from Dash before? He's not as hard as outrunning a ghost."

"You're right, he's worse," I reply with a chuckle, only half-joking. I mean... I'm not always able to outrun Dash as a human. I have to resort to my powers some of those times to sneak out of his sight.

But since she probably believes I've been working with Phantom, she only scoffs. "Yeah, right. Says the kid who sees ghosts on a daily basis." I guess my alarmed expression is a bit obvious, since she shifts uncomfortably. "I mean... you're a Fenton. Aren't you used to that?"

This is getting ridiculous. I thought for a second she would bring up the Fenton-Phantom relationship but it turns out she wants to keep avoiding the subject. Guess this dodging exercise will be a perfect fit for her. Would it be too awkward to admit we know there's a ghost hunting side-job we both share? Even if she's not completely aware of who or what I really am, she at least knows I'm a part of "Team Phantom".

"Sure, I've learned how to take care of myself, sort of," I answer instead. "But in case you haven't noticed, what my parents do is pretty much useless against guys like Dash."

Valerie eyes me curiously again. "So you're powerless against Dash? I don't buy it. Why not try standing up to him?"

"Because... what's the point? If I succeed, he'll just look for a replacement and pass on the torture to someone else. Besides, I'm already used to it."

I obviously don't mention I can handle the abuse because my powers help me recover faster from stronger attacks, or that I have a secret identity to keep and this is one way to keep everyone from suspecting anything.

The uncomfortable silence returns, but I'm not sure I want to keep up with it. "So, you're going to keep silently hating me for no apparent reason or will we ever talk about it?"

Her startled look is not something I expected. "Who says I'm hating you?"

I shrug. "Well, you've been avoiding me since last week and barely even talk to me anymore."

Green eyes stare at the ground. "I already told you: I just need some time."

"Wouldn't talking about it help?" I ask tentatively.

Val stays silent for so long I almost begin to think she won't speak at all. "Dash must be a bit tired by now," she changes the subject instead as she finally talks. "We could try doing a zigzagging maneuver to keep him on his toes."

I mentally sigh in defeat, but at least feel glad she didn't shoot me down completely (probably a poor choice of words, all things considered). "That won't work. I'm his favorite 'loser', remember? If he thinks he has a chance to pummel me, he'll taunt and tag me first."

She thinks about it for a moment and then begins to draw something on the ground with her finger. "Okay, there are some cardboard boxes here we can use to slow him down if we scatter them all over the place. We can also use this structure here as a temporary hideout, grab this rope, and make him trip. From there we'll be almost free to go."

The plan doesn't sound so bad. I look at her improvised map and wonder for a second. "I think we can also use this over here," I add circling one of the walls we'll have to climb, "we can throw one of these boxes from the other side while he's going up to make him lose his balance."

A small smile finally appears on her face. "Not bad. Dash won't stand a chance against us."

I answer with another smile, wondering why things couldn't be much easier with her, given how well we can actually work together. It even worked that one time when Skulker kidnapped the both of us to see who was more worthy of being his prey. If we cooperated more often during ghost fights, not even Vlad would stand a chance.

Could I... could I try asking her to help me with this "Exterminator" guy? Should I bring it up next time we see each other as our alter egos? Is Tucker right about getting her involved in this?

"Fenton! Are you deaf?" Teslaff's words snap me back to reality and I see Valerie is already getting prepared at the start line. I blush and mumble an apology as I rush next to Val.

"Oh, this will be great!" I hear my personal bully exclaim viciously behind us. I don't feel as uneasy, though. I'm sure our plan will work.

As soon as the whistle blows, Val and I make a run for it. Dash is supposed to give us a 5 second head start, so we make the best of it by going over the first obstacle before he runs in our direction. Val asks me to hurry and I try to comply as best as I can. I even consider going intangible, in case that helps me go faster, but I don't want to risk everything for something so dumb. We reach the cardboard boxes almost at the same time he closes in on me, which was something I already expected. He trips with one of the boxes thrown and we leave the rest scattered so he slows down a bit. We climb the wall and, as soon as I'm on the other side, I try to pick the rope we'll use later on as Val gets ready to sabotage Dash's climb with another box. As soon as she notices the jock on the structure, I give her two thumbs up and she throws the object that makes him lose his balance, giving us a bit of an advantage. We then prepare to set the rope and, given how close we are to the finish line, we agree with a nod to run for it.

"Just a little longer and we'll make it!" Val exclaims excited, probably pumped with all the adrenaline.

I'm about to answer when I suddenly trip, crashing face first against the ground. My legs and everything else feels numb. I try to focus on Val who yells something I can no longer understand. I know I'm close to the finish line and all I have to do is manage to get my feet to respond or even just crawl to the end to beat Dash. I hear someone calling my name, several footsteps getting closer, and a pounding sound in my head repeating Youngblood's words. I can't stay focused much longer when it all suddenly becomes black.

* * *

___Notes:_

_Sorry, I'm submitting this again since I apparently missed a thing or two. If you made it this far, thanks for reading!_

_*GAW: Ghost Awareness Week_


	4. Chapter 3: Fainting Spell

_Notes: Hey, there! Thanks again for checking out this chapter and for the feedback. Really, really appreciated. _

_With all the stress I've gotten from work lately, this has really helped me relax a little. Nothing like pouring some of that bad luck on fictional characters, I guess haha (just kidding)._

* * *

**Chapter 3: Fainting Spell**

"I don't know... I don't think any of the ecto-infections we've been able to identify could relate to what Danny's showing."

"But there's obviously a ghost behind this, Mads!"

"I know you're the experts on spectral dissection and all, but there are a thousand other explanations. Old-fashioned, _medical_ explanations."

My head's still spinning, but I'm pretty sure those are my parents talking and some other guy that sounds familiar. I make my best effort to open my eyes, but my eyelids still feel kinda heavy. I try to move the rest of my body as well, feeling every muscle waking from the numbness. What the heck happened? The last thing I remember was tripping close to the finish line and Valerie yelling something at me. No, I don't think I tripped. More like... _collapsed_. I remember my legs stopped responding and then it all just went black. And woozy. Let's not forget the woozy sensation.

"He's waking up," I recognize Tucker's voice alerting anyone else in the proximity.

When my eyes are finally open, the light is a bit blinding so I instinctively take a hand up to cover its source. I try to shift to a sitting position and take in my surroundings as the world becomes clearer. The school nurse, Ms. Warren, walks towards me as I realize I'm in her office. She puts a hand on my shoulder asking me to lie down and take it easy. Mom and dad are standing close to me, as well as Tucker, Sam, and Professor Stantz.

"Seriously, guys, I'm okay," I half-lie to everyone around me. What else am I supposed to do? I'm already feeling guilty for being the cause behind their worried faces. The least I can do is cheer them up a bit.

"You scared us back there, buddy," Prof. Stantz says sounding a bit apologetic. "We think you exerted yourself, so I'm kinda sorry I pushed you kids so hard today. Especially with the stamina you have."

I don't know how to respond to his comment, but apparently no one else does either. I might not know what happened to me back there, but I know I didn't feel exactly tired while we were running through the obstacle course. The nurse breaks the awkwardness as she checks my blood pressure, which apparently was below my average when they brought me unconscious. "It's getting back to normal now," she announces. I'm lucky (and admittedly a bit surprised) she actually used the word "_normal" _to describe my condition, seeing how my ghost-infused DNA has changed even the smallest things, like my temperature or heart rate. Yet one of the many reasons why I'm getting the hint from Tucker and avoiding any kind of check-up like a plague.

Sam gives me a weak and reassuring smile as she squeezes my arm gently. I sheepishly return the gesture and begin to wonder how the nurse even let this many people come in, but knowing how persistent Sam can be and with my parents also around I'm guessing there was some sort of argument involved.

"Can I take him home, then?" mom asks.

I'm torn between protesting about staying here to spend some time with my friends and catch up with my schoolwork, considering I'm starting to feel much better now and my grades are already suffering. But then I remember a certain bully who has some pending business with me, not to mention the lovely event my parents put together at school, which could mean a potential disaster for my alter ego if more ghosts decide to show up. Yeah, going home doesn't sound that bad, come to think about it.

"Sure," Ms. Warren replies. "He should rest and eat something healthy. I wouldn't be too surprised if he turns up with anemia." I kinda doubt that, since I'm not getting sick as regularly as before I got shocked by the portal, but mentioning why or how might not be the best idea.

I guess I'll have to wait 'til after school to ask my friends what actually happened and see if we can come up with our own ideas. Maybe it really is just exhaustion but from the lack of sleep I've been having lately plus the whole deal with Vlad. Can't hurt to look into it, though...

* * *

All things considered, I'm no longer sure if the silent mood in the Fenton GAV should be considered comforting or unnerving. I mean... I _could_ use this opportunity to relax and enjoy that for the time being I have a valid excuse to skip school. Of course, seeing how this uneventful ride is only allowing me to go back and remember all the things that have been wrong since last night, I'm not finding too much comfort in staying silent.

For example, I still don't know what's up with that "Exterminator" guy. I'll probably use this free time to look him up or something, maybe that way I can still keep Tuck and Sam out of this until I confirm if I should be getting worried or not. And if the ghost I saw last night isn't the "Exterminator", I still have to figure out who or what he really is, and what kind of "operation" he's eager to get started.

I also stand by my previous thoughts: maybe involving Valerie somehow might not be such a terrible idea, especially if this happens to be a bigger threat that can get others seriously hurt. It's worth considering, at least, right?

Last but not least, putting aside the _wonderful_ visit we had at school today, I now have to worry about being worn out due to lack of sleep in addition to fighting ghosts. The last time I felt like that was back when I got my powers, especially after the first fight with the Lunch Lady. I know Sam already said it before, but I should probably try to take it easy until I'm back to my full strength. I didn't know that fight against Vlad had left me so drained.

And now I'm thinking about that fruit-loop and his Dr. Jekyll phase. Silence is definitely not helping me relax.

"Sweetie, are you feeling any better?" mom asks and (thankfully) distracts me from my current thoughts.

I glance in her direction and notice the motherly concern on her face. "Yeah, just... thinking."

"You're not upset about the Ghost Awareness Week, are you?"

I arch an eyebrow and try to let her words sink in, remembering how I was totally taken by surprise when they showed up. I haven't really given it a lot of thought. I'm not particularly thrilled about their visit, but now that she mentions it... "Upset? Why? Because my parents went to my school, showing pictures of me, and telling everyone how I got kidnapped by some ghosts a few days ago?"

"Ok, so your father went a bit overboard-"

"_Dad_ went _a bit_ overboard?"

She sighs, not taking her eyes off the road. "We're doing this to protect you and prepare you for any ghostly situation."

The irony is not lost in me, considering how _I'm_ my own ghostly situation. And apparently by messing up during Vlad's lab fiasco I'm stuck with additional parental surveillance, extra wailing from my personal bully, visits from ghost crazies at school, and the like. Lesson definitely learned: don't barge into that creep's lab again.

Silence settles between us and her saddened look takes me on another lovely guilt trip. Crossing my arms, I take a deep breath. "Well... if you hadn't been there today, everyone would still be freaking about the ghost that showed up in class," I add. "So... thanks." I get a smile from her and everything's all right between us.

Once we make it home, mom tells me to rest and that she'll wake me up in a couple of hours to get something to eat and will try to check on me every hour, just in case. She also mentions she'll be down at the lab in the meantime and to call for her if I need anything. I tell her not to worry, that it'll be as if I wasn't even here (which might turn out to be true if I have to chase another spook).

With mom busy tinkering with probably another annoying invention that will make my ghost half cringe, I'm left alone to do what I've wanted to do all day: see what information I can find on the new creep I met and figure out what's the deal with the Exterminator, in case they're not one and the same.

I shut the door behind me, locking it just in case. Mom usually calls or knocks first, but when I'm doing "Phantom" stuff I'd rather play it safe. I know I should be sleeping right now, but I don't think I'll be able to get enough rest with everything that's been going on. So I just focus on getting this computer started, typing my new password as the login screen appears.

Yeah, that's right: new password. I probably should've done that a long time ago when Jazz first got into my files with my old password, not to mention Valerie was able to look through my ghost files and figure out more than she should have. At least I should be thankful Tucker taught me how to protect my personal files so that not even someone with my login information can find them. All it requires is the right USB key that I usually hide where no tangible person can find it.

Anyway... considering a lot of info is already indexed nowadays, let's start by looking up this "Exterminator" ghost on the Internet... assuming he's a ghost, of course. The quick search shows all kinds of results, from cheesy TV shows I've never even heard about (not that I'm up to date with the programming) to information about several different ghost hunters elsewhere claiming to "eradicate ghostly pests". None of the links seem interesting or even remotely related to what I had in mind, except for one I found on the 8th result page: "The Paranormal Master Collection", a site with a huge catalogue of haunted sites, legends, famous ghosts, and the like. Bingo!

Contrary to what the site says to offer, it's kinda simple and some sections seem to be under construction. The linked result shows a list of articles, with an entry labeled as "The Ghost Exterminator". I click on the highlighted text and a single paragraph about this guy shows up.

_The Ghost Exterminator, also known as Exorkizein, is a mythical character who is said to bind a specter with a curse, usually in order to control it and command it to act contrary to its own will. It has been portrayed in popular myths as a figure similar to the Angel of Death. It's also believed to possess the power to expel a ghost from living and non-living hosts to force the spirit to move on._

Exorkizein... that's the name he probably said last night. So it's the same guy after all. Okay, now I'm panicking. This can't be good. Not good at all.

Calm down, Danny, maybe it's not the same guy Youngblood talked about. Maybe it's just a really freaky coincidence. There's no real description or picture here, so I have no way of actually knowing if it's the same ghost. Besides, I haven't found any other site with this kind of info. What if it's not legit?

But it fits, doesn't it? The Angel of Death... that's usually a skeleton, right? This guy even had boney wings. It could be him. What freaks me out the most is the fact that I don't know what the heck he would want from me. If he can exorcise ghosts, what would that mean to a half-ghost like me? And why now? Why me? If Youngblood said I'm cursed, does that mean he's trying to bind me somehow? Maybe I should just go with Clockwork or Pandora for advice, but with my luck I'll probably get attacked the minute I enter the Ghost Zone and I'm not sure I'm in top shape to face any of my enemies right now. Still, I could try, right? Who knows, maybe if they're afraid of this Exterminator guy then they won't get closer to his so-called prey, or whatever I'm supposed to be.

Something's weird, though... how come he said he didn't want to fight? If he were really after me then he wouldn't have had a problem fighting against me. Maybe he's after something else and I just sort of got in the way. He used some sort of sleeping gas against me, which doesn't make much sense and doesn't sound too threatening if we consider the kind of things he can probably do. So what if I try looking for him first? Just see what he's doing from a distance, no confrontations this time. Would that actually work?

I need to clear my head, figure out what to do. Usually flying helps, but I'm not sure I'd dare going solo this time. I could wait for Sam and Tucker to go on patrol tonight. I'll probably have to sneak out since there's no way mom will let me hang out with them outside after what happened to me today.

Oh, man... was that caused by this ghost? I've known for a while that my human and ghost halves are not independent from one another, even if changing forms will make me look and feel different. If he affected my ghost half, what if fainting was actually a side effect?

I'm panicking. I'm panicking again and just going on about what might've happened is not really helping. I gotta tell my friends about this and come up with a plan or something.

Why am I the one stuck with all the bad luck lately?

* * *

"Ok, Danny, are you finally going to tell us or do we have to use the Fenton Thermos against you?" I hear Sam's voice through the Fenton Phones and I shiver at the thought of being stuck again in my own container.

"I wouldn't ignore her threats, man," Tucker adds. "Or her sadistic techniques."

My friends and I agreed to meet up during tonight's patrol, only half-hoping to find the newest addition to my "rogues gallery". I couldn't officially leave the house since my parents insisted on checking on me every hour, asking if everything was fine, scanning the room for any ecto-contamination (which was fortunately interrupted by one of Jazz's shrink moments), taking my temperature, and some such nonsense. I convinced my parents I would go to sleep early but I actually managed to sneak out to see my friends. Good thing my sister has me covered if anything happens back at home.

Meanwhile, Sam had taken the opportunity to get some books from the library and Skulk 'n Lurk, while Tucker tried collecting any online news that could relate to Exorkizein. Of course, I haven't told them about everything I found out or even this guy's actual name. I don't want to freak them out on the phone, which is why I wanted to meet them outside in the first place.

Back to the question in hand, I sigh in defeat after I realize there's no point in postponing this conversation. I really don't want my friends to worry more than they already do, plus I don't want to keep dragging them, or anyone else who gets close to me, too deep into all of this. I swore I would always protect them and sometimes that includes protecting them from me.

"You're right... I should probably tell you what's going on. Or at least what I _think _is going on," I begin to explain. I look down at my friends from where I'm currently flying and notice they both slow down their scooters, a sign that they're going to give me their undivided attention.

I run a gloved hand through my white hair, an old habit I have yet to get rid of, when suddenly my ghost sense goes off. "Ghost alert," I warn them while I turn around to see who's the newcomer.

Sam scoffs and I can almost hear her roll her eyes. "Of _course_ there is..."

The creature is just another animal ghost, which would be the tenth I've had to fight in the last four days. Thankfully, none of them seem to be a part of Vlad's spooky forest collection. Like I said: thing's have been a bit slow lately. This one looks like a mixture of a bat and a spider, which would probably go well with Sam's goth accessories if it weren't showing its pointy fangs menacingly in my direction. The spider-bat hisses and lunges towards me. I dodge it easily and aim an ectoblast in its direction. The shot hits one of its wings and makes it lose balance.

"Tuck, can you hand me the Thermos?" I ask through the phones.

"Here ya go, dude!" my friend tosses the device in my direction and I catch it just in time before the bat attacks me again. I manage to get the Thermos working as the ghost dives in my direction. It shrieks in anger as the blue light captures it. Just as I'm putting the lid on it, my ghost sense goes off again and I realize that little batsy here wasn't alone.

"Uhm, guys, there are three more bats over here. Do you know if there's any other around?"

"We're on it!" Sam answers. Apparently two more were coming their way.

The good thing about this kind of attacks is that I don't have to waste a lot of energy coming up with witty comebacks or listening to their long-winded monologues about world domination and the usual tirade. Instead I get to keep the creatures off balance just enough to capture them and send them back where they came from. These guys might be slimy and gruesome, but they're not that tough compared to other mindless ghosts.

I aim another blast, strong enough to confuse the three new bats, but all that comes out is a sizzling sound. Uh-oh...

Okay, so maybe a strong blast is not the best idea right now with the low energy I've been having lately, so I try again with a smaller charge. Crud! Nothing's happening!

"Danny, is everything ok?" Sam asks concerned. Apparently she and Tuck already dealt with their two pests and saw me fail my own shots.

Before I can answer, one of the annoying spooks shoots a small sonar blast, kinda like an extra-small version of my Ghostly Wail. The force of the attack is still strong enough to send me flying back a little, but I manage to fly back faster to at least try to hit them. One of my punches lands on the first bat's jaw, while another connects to the second one's abdomen (or whatever it is). The last ghost dodges one of my razor kicks and hits me in the stomach.

"That's it, now I'm mad," I curse at it with a glare. I can almost feel the stupid, flying bat-spider mocking me. Instead of attacking him, I try using the Thermos once more to capture the two dizzy animals and the other elusive one. Fair enough, they get in the way of the blue vortex and get stuck inside with their other pal. "That'll teach ya." I mutter under my breath.

"Good thing that wasn't Skulker or Technus," Tucker voices with some concern.

"Yeah, Danny, what happened? Are you feeling ok?" Sam asks just as worried.

I finish putting the lid on the Thermos and decide now should be a good time to tell them about everything, from Youngblood's warning to the website's description on Exorkizein. I start floating down in their direction but I suddenly feel like I'm flying faster than intended. Ok, not exactly flying... I'm _falling_. I scream in surprise and I hear my friends yelling my name. I try to avoid the harsh landing but it's like I forgot how to fly. I do manage to turn intangible at last minute to soften the fall, but the new lightheaded feeling that comes with this little free fall might be worse than the crash.

My friends run in my direction and kneel next to me as soon as they're by my side. "You're definitely not okay," Sam states simply.

"Geez, you think?" She frowns at my sarcastic remark.

They both help me get up and guide me to one of the scooters. Since we can't risk being seen together, especially not by our parents, we decide to head to a small clearing in the park a couple of blocks from here. As soon as we're all out of anyone's sight, I change back to resume my human identity and sit on the bench beside me as soon as the two rings of light finish traveling through my body. Wow, my head's still spinning...

Tucker takes his helmet off and hands me a bottle of water he had in his backpack. I take it and mumble a 'thank you'.

"So, first you faint in school and now you're losing your powers? What gives?"

"Please, Sam, just sit down and let me tell you the whole story."

"Oh, you better! Do you have any idea how freaked out we are?"

Yes, I do. Which is why I didn't want to come running to tell them right away. I figured that if we managed to make it through tonight's patrol, maybe I'd feel better and this whole Exterminator thing would end up being a huge misunderstanding. Instead, I got to confirm my fears and worry my friends some more. So much for my brilliant plan...

"Youngblood came to give me this," I start while showing them the small amulet the kid gave earlier that day. Sam takes the necklace and eyes it curiously. "He said it's to keep bad things away because there's something out there coming for me." Stay calm, Danny. Don't freak them out, you'll be fine, you gotta remind them about it.

"Is this why you've been feeling weird all day?" Tuck asks. I shake my head in reply.

"I don't think so. At first I thought it was a prank, but after doing a little search it turns out it's all connected to the guy I met last night." This seems to spark their interest even more. "His name is Exorkizein, "The Exterminator"... as in "Ghost" Exterminator."

They seem to pale a little and it's time to play brave again. "Don't worry, I'm _fine!_ Remember how we thought I wasn't fully recovered from Vlad's attack? And how this guy said he wasn't looking for a fight? It might all just be a big coincidence, right?"

Sam looks me dead in the eye and gives me one of her grim tones. "Danny... you just _fell_ from the sky. You couldn't even shoot a blast."

"Yeah, you should be gaining strength, not losing it," Tucker pipes up.

"Do you at least know what this ghost is capable of doing?"

I take a deep breath. "He's supposed to exorcise ghosts or something, to make them do what he wants. But, really, we don't even know if his powers can work on me since I'm half-ghost. Seriously, I don't think he even has a valid reason to come after me. I'm not even sure if he's really after me."

Uncomfortable silence. Oh, how I'm loving those today...

Sam puts a hand on top of mine, followed by Tucker mimicking the gesture. "We'll figure something out. Together," she says reassuringly, though I can tell she's not completely convinced. I can't blame her, though... "We'll come up with a plan or something."

"We can try searching for more information in Sam's books, if you want, man."

"Thanks, guys. That really means a lot."

The three of us share a smile. I'm really grateful they're here to help me through these scary situations. I know there are some secrets I'd rather not share even with them. Like the whole story of what happened to our alternate future, or those hidden diaries I've been keeping since I turned into a ghost hybrid. Still, some burdens can actually be shared with the right people. I'm just glad these guys stick with me even when things seem to get too hard to handle. I guess I couldn't have asked for better friends.

* * *

_Notes: Okay, no cliffhangers this time. I'm actually kind of proud I managed to avoid it this time._


	5. Chapter 4: Ghostly Sighting

**Notes:** Thanks again for the support and feedback :) I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Ghostly Sighting**

After everything that's been going on, I can't really say I had a good night's sleep. Can anyone honestly blame me? Whenever I tried to close my eyes to drift off to dreamland, I got this silly sensation and suddenly felt like the 6-year-old me who was afraid of the banshee under the bed. Yeah, my parents could come up with the most interesting versions of the boogieman. But looking back to those years of being afraid a ghost would phase from beneath my bed and steal my soul, and how after listening to even the smallest noise I'd immediately run to Jazz's bedroom for safety, I realize tonight's no different from back then.

Sure, when I was younger, I didn't run to my parent's bedroom first since Jazz's was closer and I was afraid they would cover my room with Anti-Spook Goo again, leaving an eerie glow on my walls for several days after the incident. Now, with a "cumbersome secret identity" to worry about, Jazz continues being my number one choice. I had decided to pay her a visit, ask her for advice, letting her do the psychobabble thing to calm me down, and come out with enough confidence to face my fears. It's what my sister does best. But as soon as I saw her sleeping peacefully, I knew it wouldn't be fair to drag her into this again.

Jazz still doesn't know about the new ghost in town, the one who's apparently messing with my energy, since I didn't have a chance to talk to her earlier. With that in mind, I wasn't going to let her waste a good night's sleep over something she wouldn't be able to help me with, or at least not without some research, which we weren't going to do at 2 a.m. unless we wanted to stay up all night. She has her own worries at the moment, between Yale, Harvard, and a dozen other universities who would die to have her in their halls, so she doesn't need me shoving all the ghostly weirdness in her direction every time something happens.

Me? I get to be the hero with the burden of an alter ego and all the other strains that come with it, like having my ghost half theoretically fade away and that sort of thing. I also have to worry about how I'm supposed to fight a ghost everyone else is afraid of while we don't even know a thing about him. Not to mention, with my powers malfunctioning every now and then, I'm pretty much a sitting duck even for Skulker. At least I know I won't have to worry about my pelt for the time being...

Aside from all that, I have to be the big boy now... the big boy who goes downstairs to turn on the Fenton Works' ghost shield in the middle of the night, just in case.

After realizing there was no reason to keep the shield off if I was in no shape to fight anyone, I managed to sleep as much as someone with new and recurrent nightmares could. Hence today's constant yawning, the momentary zoning out, and the constant dizziness during class and even now at lunch.

I lazily flip to the next page of "An Insider's Look at Specters" and wonder how anyone who isn't from a ghost-raided town would have more insight than those who have actually seen and fought ghosts on a daily basis. But then I remember I shouldn't get all cocky when I don't have a clue of what this Exterminator dude is all about.

"Still nothing?" Sam asks us, looking up from her book in the process.

"Zero. Zilch. Zip. Nada."

"Okay, we get the point, Tuck," I interrupt and roll my eyes.

Another yawn and I put my book on top of the other pile of discarded material. So much for spending lunchtime doing some research. We decided it would be best to at least skim through some books on exorcism along with the ones about ghost legends, figuring it can't be too farfetched to relate those descriptions from what Exorkizein probably does. And, apparently, we were wrong. I would have to be half demon instead to have any of those symptoms we read fit my situation.

On any other week, looking at our picnic table full of paranormal books could've raised more than a dozen eyebrows and more than the same amount of snickers. Now that it's "Ghost Awareness Week" I can honestly say one of its perks is we can say we just got too excited with Dr. Maitland's lectures on the occult. Still, we opted to take everything outside instead of the noisy and overly crowded cafeteria.

"So all we have right now is that website I found yesterday and about a handful of references on green puke," I make a face while saying that. Seriously, reading through that was enough to make me lose any appetite I had left and almost toss my cookies in the process. It's bad enough that I've already been feeling kinda dizzy.

"Yeah, it doesn't make any sense," Sam adds. "Think about it: this guy is supposed to be the big, bad wolf in the Ghost Zone. If all the other ghosts fear him, how come there's no more information? Even Pariah Dark and the Fright Knight appear on some of these books."

I open my mouth but, before I can say a word, the girl sitting in front of me cuts me short. "And don't you even dare to _suggest _going to the Ghost Zone."

"Well, why don't we try contacting the site's admin? Or hack into the site to at least figure out where it's from?" Leave it to the techno geek to think of that...

Before Sam or I can voice our opinion, he takes out his PDA and starts typing furiously on it. He doesn't say a thing for a couple of seconds but then a confused 'huh' makes us look questioningly at him.

"That doesn't sound like a breakthrough 'huh'," I tell Sam.

"Not even a they-call-that-a-firewall 'huh'," she jibes.

Tucker looks up and glares. "How about a you're-not-gonna-like-this 'huh'?"

He turns his PDA to show us the screen with a map on it, pointing to... "Casper High?" I read worriedly.

"Whoever did that website used our own school's servers to upload that information," he explains.

"You mean... they used our ultra top secret computers no human or ghost could ever get their hands on?" Sam asks sarcastically.

Oh, man... it could've been anyone. From what I've learned after a year of night patrols, Casper High doesn't have a lot of security past eight, at the most. It must have something to do with the fact that no sane kid would ever dare to come to one of Amity Park's most attacked locations alone after dark. Not even with a dare involved. Of course, the lack of students around keeps our school free from attacks as well, since most ghosts tend to show up when there's actually someone there to scream in terror. That's probably one of the main reasons I tend to keep this place out of my usual route whenever I'm scanning the town for paranormal activity. Which means I wouldn't exactly know if anyone sneaked in or not.

Wait a minute... this _is_ a breakthrough. "That could mean this is all made up!" I cheerfully announce.

My friends exchange concerned glances and I sense they're about to burst my bubble. "Just because we don't know _who_ uploaded that information, it doesn't mean it can't be at least partially real," Sam's the first to speak. "Youngblood _did_ alert you, remember? Even if he could be pulling your leg, I seriously doubt he's so tech savvy."

"What if Technus or someone else helped him?" I shoot back.

"So... they team up to play a prank on you and mysteriously make your powers go on the fritz?" I can notice Tucker's not convinced.

"Occam's razor, Danny," Sam says, as if the term were all too familiar to me.

"The oca-what-now?" Tuck and I ask at the same time.

She sighs. "The simplest explanation is usually the right one."

I cross my arms. "Ok, so how do you explain the website?"

Tucker shrugs. "That a student or a teacher is using their spare time to build a website on all the weird information they've stumbled upon?"

"How is that explanation simpler?"

He takes another look at his PDA, and scrolls down to look at some information. "The update logs on the site show this was done in plain light of day: lunch hour, after school, between classes. Some pages are even months old. Since you're usually here during those hours, your ghost sense should've alerted you, right?"

Ok, so he actually has a point. Which means there's no good news for me after all. "So back to square one."

"Not necessarily. Tucker also said we could contact the admin. We don't know if whoever that is will answer, but we can still give it a try."

Time could be running short and I'm not sure my powers will be able to handle it if we just sit around and wait until the anonymous web master decides to reply to our e-mail. There has to be another way or at least an _additional _way to deal with this. A visit to the Ghost Zone is still on top of my list, but I know Sam is right and I shouldn't even consider it with how things have been going lately.

At a loss of words (and options), I glance around and suddenly notice Valerie walking into school. An idea begins to form... She's with Star, probably talking about some gossip from the looks on their faces. Apparently I've been staring at them long enough that Val notices and gives me a startled look. I immediately turn to face my friends and avoid any more eye contact with her. I can still notice she's looking at me from the corner of my eye, though.

So about this idea... "How about Valerie?" I ask.

Sam groans. "Not this, again."

Before she goes on her whole "you can't trust her, partly because I don't trust her" rant, I raise my hands to calm her down and voice my thoughts. "No, wait. Hear me out... Phantom has a truce with her. Maybe I can ask if she's heard anything or see if she's got a ghost captured who can actually tell us more about The Exterminator."

"I'm not so sure she'd be crazy enough to hand over a ghost to you. No offense, man," Tuck is the first to argue.

"And aren't you forgetting your powers are not working properly? How can you stay safe with no way to defend yourself?"

I shake my head at her worried outburst. "My powers are coming and going. I was able to fly later last night and today I gave it another try before coming to school, just to make sure. Plus, if we have a truce, she has no reason to start attacking me and I have no reason to use most of my powers, anyway."

Sam sighs a bit tiredly and begins to put back into her bag the books she brought, apparently avoiding my gaze. "We're just worried about you, Danny. I-," she pauses. "_We _don't want you to end up hurt more than you already have."

I put a hand on her arm and shoot her the most reassuring smile I can give at the moment. "I'll be careful, ok? I'll slip a note in her locker and tell her to meet me in the park. You can stay close and use the Fenton Phones if you want, in case things do get ugly. But I'm sure they won't. Trust me on this, ok?"

She looks at me, the concerned frown still on her face. Our other friend clears his throat. "I hate to break the puppy eyes and all, but we should probably head back inside if you want to put that note in her locker. It's almost time for class."

Both Sam and I blush. To keep the embarrassment from being too obvious, I quickly rip a piece of paper from my notebook and scribble down the note for Val, signing it as "Phantom" before I fold it in half. She'll probably wonder what I'm up to, how I managed to make it into school without triggering her alarm, and how she's going to chew me out for sneaking around while she's in class. But I also trust she won't come ready to blast me apart. Even if things are still weird between Danny Fenton and Valerie Gray, things are surprisingly not as awkward between Danny Phantom and the Red Huntress.

With this in mind, as soon as the warning bell rings, I slip the note into Val's locker after my friends and I make sure no one's looking. I smile at them, trying to look calm and confident. When they smile back, I can tell Sam's still not comfortable with the idea.

* * *

The good thing about not fighting so many spooks lately and having the Ghost Awareness Week at the same time is that Danny Phantom is in fact getting the week off around Casper High. That's awesome news to my detention records, since this whole situation allowed me to make it two days in a row without the dreaded punishment. Hey, silver linings, if life gives you lemons, and all that jazz, right?

So when I tell a certain ghost-hunting partner to meet me after school, I know she'll be available for the same reasons and will probably make it to the park where I said I'd be once school's out. We haven't really seen much of each other since we agreed to start our truce, but I haven't really given her any reasons to want to take me down like she used to. I know she will still scan the whole area for anything suspicious, though.

"Wanted to see me, Phantom?"

Her voice startles me a little and I look down from the tree branch I've been sitting on just in time to see Valerie landing below. She hides her jet sled and stares at me with her arms crossed, already looking a bit defensive. I quickly glance to where my friends are hiding, just above another tree several feet away from here, and make sure they're not easy to spot. I float down with ease, not really pushing my limits but testing my stability all the same. It's still a little glitchy, but no so much to let Val think something's wrong with me.

"Hey, Valerie, you made it. No guns blazing this time," I say nervously, with my hand rubbing the back of my neck, attempting to break the ice with a little joke.

She gives me a smug grin. "What makes you think I can't just activate something to blast you any moment now?"

"That won't be necessary," I answer more seriously. "I need to ask you something."

This seems to take her aback. I'm guessing she's not too used to seeing her temporary ally just going straight to business and with a serious face on. "Okaaay. What do you want to ask me? Is this about Vlad?" she asks with a mixture of worry and anger in her voice, practically spitting the fruit-loop's name.

"No, it's something else entirely. Have you seen any ghosts lately?" She raises an eyebrow as if it were a really stupid question. I roll my eyes. "Other than me."

The Huntress considers my question for a second. "It's been pretty quiet lately. I only fought against some dumb animal spooks, Skulker attacked me three nights ago, the Box Ghost showed up this morning, and-"

"Wait, you fought Skulker? He's been around and didn't target me?" This I didn't see coming. I thought for sure he was just staying in his lair and keeping away from me, like all the other ghosts in the Zone.

"Hey, you're the one who said Vlad was his contractor. I'm guessing he was just following orders, not looking for a trophy."

I look at her baffled. "Why didn't you tell me?"

She gives me a mockingly thoughtful look. "Hmm, let's see... maybe I should've asked the Fentons to give you the message. No, no, wait, what about a 'Phantom' signal in the sky? Or the black and white phone in the mayor's office?"

"Ok, ok, point taken."

After a brief pause she stares at me more seriously now. "I don't think you really get it. I'm not too comfortable with the idea of suddenly finding a note in my locker when I don't have a way to contact you. So much for teaming up, huh?"

Ouch, she has a totally valid point, especially since I told her I would help if Vlad came after her. I figured she wouldn't _want_ to contact me, not to mention we usually meet during our fights. Of course, with the attacks being so scarce...

"I'm sorry," is all I can say. Really, what else can I tell her? "I guess I didn't think about that... We can think of something."

Val sighs. "Just forget it, ok? What's this really about, Phantom? This must be pretty important if it made you come out to my locker in the middle of the day, even with all the ghost hunters at school."

I shift uncomfortably. "I guess I'm running out of options. And I actually don't have a lot of time to explain." Ok, Fenton, one step at the time... "Do you still have the Box Ghost trapped?" Please say yes, please say yes, please say yes...

"I'm not going to tell you if you don't tell me what's going on," she crosses her arms again and I know she's playing the role of the no-nonsense Val I've met during past battles.

Relax, Danny, this should be easy. She's not attacking first, at least. "There's, uh, there's a new ghost around. Well, new to Amity Park, at least. Apparently part of the Ghost Zone is afraid of him but I still have to figure out exactly why."

This seems to get her attention. Not that she didn't seem already interested. "Why don't you go and ask around the Ghost Zone, then? Shouldn't that be your kind of territory instead of asking a ghost _hunter_ in Amity Park?"

"Ok, first of all, only a few ghosts actually _like_ me, so it's not like I can sit down to talk to the first ghost I find. Second of all, I-"

"Whoa, hold on a second," she interrupts me and I can notice she's a bit upset. "You don't want to ask me about this ghost or compare notes on our recent battles. You actually want me to release the most annoying ghost I've ever met so you can ask him about this week's baddie, don't you?"

I feel like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Now that she words it like that, I begin to think this isn't the brightest idea I could've come up with. But since I don't have any other option, I guess I _could_ settle with asking the Box Ghost. Oh, boy... "Kinda?" I answer cautiously. "Does that mean you still have him with you?"

The look on her face tells me she can't believe I've really considered talking to her prisoner. Still, she gives another sigh (_irritated _sigh, that is) and reluctantly starts typing something into her suit's wrist keyboard. I can barely listen to what she's mumbling (something about me being stupid and whatnot) as she launches from her wrist a red hologram of the ghost.

"My dad came up with that one. It's supposed to help in case you need to question a ghost." I mentally cringe at the reminder of our last meeting, thankful she didn't use that thing back then. "This creep's still locked away in my own container, but I can project his image here."

Wow. I'm genuinely impressed. I know her new suit has a lot of high-end tech partly because of Technus and his plans to keep me out of his way. But I never imagined her dad would actually get around to helping her with her gear. I just assumed she was using it without his actual consent. Did she tell him something about Plasmius to make him change his mind? Nah, she wouldn't. Maybe he just came up with that one for some other project at Axion.

Anyway, back to the hologram in front of us... "Can he hear us?"

"I AM THE BOX GHOST! YOUR NEWLY CONCOCTED CONTAINER CAN'T HOLD ME-"

Val groans and mutes the ghost's projection, letting him go on with his usual monologue of "corrugated doom". "Not the chatty type of ghost I'd have in mind. Look, just try to ask him what you need so I can be on my way."

I stare at her for a second, not sure if I want her to listen to our conversation. Aside from all of this being kinda personal, if he slips and even hints at the idea of me being half a ghost, it's all over. Val might actually make the connections I'm trying to avoid if she suspects I'm anything like Vlad.

My hesitation doesn't sit well with her. "What? You want me to give you some room? I can send you with him, if you want."

"Okay, okay, okay!" I put my hands up defensively. I mentally cringe and brace myself for the annoying conversation I'm about to have, hoping for the best. I'll still have to be careful if I have to cover up anything. "Can you unmute him?"

Another click from her wrist and the obnoxious monologue continues. "-AND YOU SHOULD TREMBLE WHEN MY CARDBOARD VENGEANCE SHIPS YOU TO YOUR DOOOOOM!" The ghost wiggles his fingers while saying the last part.

"Can you cut if off?" I yell at him. As if we haven't heard this speech a thousand times already...

"YOU!" the blue guy in overalls shouts when he notices me at last. "I SHALL-"

"Just give it a rest, will you?" I interrupt again. "I need to ask you something. If you help me out, I'm going to leave you alone for the rest of the week, all right?"

The Box Ghost shuts up and seems to consider this for a moment.

"Think of all the bubble wrap you can collect in one week," I add to seal the deal. Valerie mutters something about not giving him ideas, but I already know he won't be that much of a threat.

After a brief silence, which I'm sure everyone in the proximity is also grateful for, he extends his arms and resumes the shouting. "BEWARE! AS YOU SHALL RECEIVE MY FULL ATTENTION, GHOST KID!"

Ok, I can finally ask a ghost about all this. I'm only a couple of questions away to find out if this whole situation is real or just some bad joke. Let's just hope he knows about what's going on in the first place.

If I don't want to end with a headache, I'll have to keep my questions short and straight to the point. So, let's start with the basics. "What do you know about a ghost called 'The Exterminator'?"

He pales noticeably, if that's even possible for someone with a glowing blue skin under the hologram's red glow. His horrified expression kinda reminds me of Youngblood's reaction and I can't help but feel a tightening knot in my stomach.

Valerie gives us both a confused look, probably feeling out of the loop. "The Exterminator?" she repeats out loud.

The Box Ghost turns to Val and then shifts his attention on me. "NO! YOU CAN'T MENTION HIS NAME IN FRONT OF HUMANS!"

So he _does _know about him. This can't be good news. A little part of me was still hoping this was all a hoax. "Why not? What is everyone so afraid of?" I ask instead, trying to sound more confident than I really am.

"No, seriously, they can't know," he adds in a lower tone of voice, which I've only heard from him a couple of times.

"But why not? Just tell me what's the big deal with this guy!" He stares at me like he's debating with himself. I have to convince him. I don't like begging but... "Please?"

The ghost bites his lip before deciding to answer. "The humans can't know for he is the carrier of ghostly doom!" he says in an even quieter tone.

The knot in my stomach just learned duplication and I'm sure I'm blanching visibly. "You mean... he destroys ghosts? And you think humans might use him against you?"

"NO! HUMANS SHOULD FEAR US! THEY CAN'T KNOW ABOUT OUR FEARS!"

I have to know for sure... "So, hypothetically, if he were looking specifically for someone, let's say... me, what would he do to someone like me? Hypothetically, of course."

He stiffens even more than when I first asked him about the ghost. "IF YOU'RE CURSED, YOU SHOULD STAY AWAY FROM THE REST OF US! GIRL HUNTER, SEND ME BACK!" He pauses. When he sees Valerie isn't taking any orders from him, he changes to a quieter tone and a pleading expression. "Please? Pretty please?"

The girl turns to look at me, a grim expression on her face. "I don't think he's going to willingly give you anything else. We can force him, if you want."

I shake my head and plead once more. "Box Ghost, please just tell me how to beat him."

"YOU CAN'T! NO ONE CAN! YOU CAN'T DEFEAT DEATH ITSELF!" He gives me a sad look. More like a _pity_ look. "You were a mighty opponent, kid. We will all remember you and your silly dreaded container."

I stare at him for a second but I don't feel like asking anything else. "You can stop the projection whenever you want," I tell Val silently.

The ghost doesn't say anything else before his image and the light from Val's wrist fade. Not really knowing what I'm doing, I turn my back to her and head to the tree I was using as a lookout earlier. The sickening sensation in my stomach comes back. I'm not sure if ghosts can actually get sick, but I guess I should thank my morphed DNA for not letting me empty my stomach right now.

"What was that all about? Is everything ok?" Valerie's voice sounds... worried?

I turn to look at her. Even with her faceplate on, I can see the look on her face just well enough to notice she _is_ concerned. Or maybe it's just the same pity the Box Ghost showed. That thought alone makes me even sicker. "I don't feel like talking about it, all right?"

She bites her lip but shows a resolved face soon after. "Ghosts lie, Phantom. Even you. What makes you think he's saying the truth or that you're even cursed? He didn't really confirm that part."

Even if she's right, I don't think I should be talking about this with her, especially not when she doesn't know the whole story and definitely not now when I also have Sam and Tucker to worry about. They must be freaking out if they heard all that. "Why do you care? Didn't you want to destroy every ghost that showed up?" I shoot back instead.

She stares at me for a moment and I don't know what to make of the face she's making. Her lips are tightly pressed before she answers. "You're right. Why should I care? You're just some ghost, right? It's not like whatever happens to you will affect me or anyone else, for that matter. Of course It'll be a bummer when I don't have anyone to keep bickering with when you're... gone."

She must be scared that I won't be here to help her with Vlad, that's all. No way does she care about whatever happens to _Phantom._ "I'm sure you'll find someone else. Thanks for the help, anyway."

Since neither of us wants to say anything else and Val finally takes the hint that I don't want to talk to her right now, she just nods and with a click under her heel the black jet sled appears under her feet, all set to carry her away from here. She glances back for a second before taking off and becoming a tiny dot in the distance.

With all the frustration building up, I charge a beam and shoot at the tree closest to me, leaving a scorch mark on the bark. "AAAAAGH!" My friends climb down from the tree they were hiding at and run in my direction now that the coast is clear. They stare at me with a sad expression. I feel drained and drop again to my knees. A small hand startles touches my shoulder.

"Don't worry, Danny," Sam's soothing voice pierces through me. "We'll figure out what to do. We always do."

Without realizing what's going on, two rings of light appear around my waist and change me back. Maybe I used too much energy with that blast. I had tried flying again but not shooting beams, so that must be it.

"Danny?" Tucker asks in alarm.

Before I can answer, or figure out why his voice sounds so far away, I feel the darkness take over me.

"Danny!"

* * *

I wake up, head throbbing. This is starting to feel too familiar already and I'm really tired of it. I feel as if a building collapsed on top of me. The nausea is still here along with the lightheadedness. My eyes regain focus and I recognize the assortment of Humpty Dumpty and space posters pinned to the blue walls around me. This is definitely my room.

"Try to relax, ok?" A pale hand gets near my face and takes a cool piece of cloth from my forehead. Sam.

"What happened?" I groggily ask her, still feeling dazed..

"You passed out again, man," Tucker's the one to answer.

I groan. "Please tell me mom and dad didn't see me like this..."

Sam shakes her head. "We called Jazz. She got your folks out of the house with some lame excuse and picked us up. She's downstairs cooking soup for you."

Jazz? Cooking? I immediately make a face at that thought. "Pass. I'd rather starve than eat something she cooked." My friends don't laugh. They're usually the first to agree with me when it comes to Jazz's kitchen experiences. Something's up...

I look at them, really look at them, and notice Tucker is looking intently at probably some video in his PDA. He even has his headphones on. Sam puts a fresh cloth on my head but looks even gloomier than before.

"What's going on?"

"Rest, Danny," Sam says. "You're burning up."

Me? Feverish? Oh, man... no wonder she's worried. I haven't had a fever for over a year, now. Add that to the list of strange medical occurrences this week brought me.

"And trust me: you don't want to know," Tucker adds, not once taking his eyes away from the PDA.

"Tucker!" Sam scolds him through clenched teeth, apparently not wanting me to pay attention to whatever he's watching.

I gently push her hand out of the way and try to take a look at the PDA screen. At least now I know I definitely have a fever. I think I might even be hallucinating.

I mean... there's no way they're showing a news report about Danny Phantom wreaking havoc...


	6. Chapter 5: Lacking Spirit

**Note: **Hey! Thank you so much again for the support and the feedback. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

* * *

**Chapter 5: Lacking Spirit**

"I'm Lance Thunder, standing on Crythin Avenue, where Danny Phantom just minutes ago flooded an entire apartment building. Residents and eyewitnesses claim the young ghost scared everyone first and destroyed everything fragile on his way, including fine china and light bulbs. He then burst the water pipes to create a colossal river able to drag all the remaining residents out. There's still no word on how long it will take these families to get back on their feet from the incident. In other parts of town, there are also reports of this ghostly menace damaging public property, including the statue of our very own mayor. The question on everyone's mind is if our once beloved hero has finally given a turn for the worse."

My mind is a total train wreck. More like a nuclear meltdown, actually. I only stare at the images in complete shock as I try to process whatever the hell is going on. I don't remember at what moment Tuck unplugged his headphones, but the voices coming from his PDA continue narrating the way "Danny Phantom" has managed to destroy not only a whole lot of homes and offices in one of Amity Park's biggest neighborhoods, but they also talk about how their hero crushed everyone's hopes and trust.

This _can't _be happening. There's no way this is real. I don't even remember doing any of those things, so I'm guessing this is Exorkizein's handiwork, forcing me to do whatever the hell he wanted. The knot that began to form earlier in my stomach is now a tangled mess and I can't help but feel disgusted with myself and everything going on. How could I let anyone manipulate me like that again? And why would he let me go back to consciousness? To torture me and see my reaction after I realized what I've done? How long was I even out?

"It wasn't you," Sam says, apparently noticing the way I've been panicking.

"What?" I manage to ask, not really understanding.

Tucker looks up from his PDA, stopping the newscast as he does so. "We've been with you the whole time. You've been out for, like, three hours and the attacks just started two hours ago."

"This is just some stupid poser, Danny," Sam adds.

I try to let that sink in, but somehow I don't find any comfort in their words. It's like I'm beginning to notice something's... _wrong_. I'm not sure I can actually describe how I feel, but a new wave of dread fills my senses, like I should be paying attention to something important, a huge clue to figure this whole thing out. And as I take a deep breath, I think I just found out what clue that is...

My friends wouldn't understand what it's like or how I can be almost 100% sure of this, but ever since Frostbite told me I have an ice core (or whatever he said it was), I've been able to actually feel the cold power inside, sitting close to my chest. How else would I've been able to use my freezing skills if I didn't find a way to tap into it? And even when I'm not using those abilities, I can sometimes feel the core's rhythmic pulse just as naturally as I'd be able to feel my heartbeat or even my breathing.

But that's the thing... I can't feel it right now, no matter how hard I concentrate. It's just like before I even realized I had it and, just like then, I can't reach it. I can't focus on the chill it sends down my spine before my transformation or the numbing sensation I get when I try to create a crystal. I don't feel the cool feeling it sends to my lungs whenever I take a deep breath, which is also the same feeling I get before my ghost sense goes off. It's all just _gone_.

I'm scared out of my mind about this theory, but I know I have to try going ghost. I close my eyes, not paying attention to my friend's questions. I picture myself as the ghost kid, Danny Phantom, to invite the chill to take over. I focus on the weightless sensation, on the aura that usually surrounds me, on the tingling feeling I get when I go intangible, on the glow in my unnaturally green eyes.

Just like I feared: nothing happens. Crud...

I open my eyes and look at my hands and my hair. It's not just the ice core, everything else is also the same: same black hair, same bare hands, same white T-shirt. I concentrate on phasing my hand through my bed, but the mattress and covers continue feeling as solid as ever.

This can't be happening... this can't be happening...

"I... I can't feel my ghost half," I say at last.

Both of them gape at me, but only Tucker finds his voice. "W-What do you mean? Maybe you're just stressed and tired."

I take a second to feel my muscles, my heart, my breathing... I know the fever's there, even if it's diminishing slowly now, but I don't feel the same drowsiness from earlier or the tiredness that usually comes from exhausting fights. "No, I can't _access _my powers." A surge of panic starts to take over me and I realize I'm close to hyperventilating.

Sam crosses her arms and tries to put on a strong face. But I've seen that look in her eyes before, and I know she's just attempting to hide how she's really freaking out, just like me. "So, what? That doesn't mean that guy out there is your ghost half going rogue or something."

To be honest, I don't know what to even think at this point. I know I wouldn't do any of the things shown on the news just a minute ago, even if I'm separated from my alter ego. I mean... I've been split a couple of times and I don't remember ever feeling as destructive as _that_ guy is turning out to be. If anything, my ghost half has the mind of the dutiful superhero, making me even wonder if I've been reading too many comic books. But what if Exorkizein really is controlling my ghost half? Or worse yet...

"What if... The Exterminator _exorcised_ the ghost out of me? What if that's why I've been having all these problems with my powers lately?"

I notice the fear and disbelief in their faces, but Tucker is the first to say anything. "But why would your ghost half attack? If the Danny out there is really you, you wouldn't consider ever doing any of that."

I shake my head. "Exorkizein can make a ghost do what he commands, right?" Their silence gives me all the answer I need. Oh, man. This is so messed up. I suddenly want to throw up, but I'm not sure if it's the fever or the whole situation what's making me feel this sick.

"Danny, you're awake," Jazz exclaims while she enters my room, a bowl of soup on her hands, reminding me how I don't have any appetite left. She leaves the bowl on my nightstand and takes a moment to look at my friends and me. She probably knows about the attacks and links that to the look on our faces right now, a frown now on her own features. "You heard the news, huh?" she asks softly, while shooting a small glare at Tucker.

"Jazz... that's me out there," I voice softly.

My sister gives me a confused look. "Danny, whatever that thing out there is, you know for sure that's not you."

I shake my head. "I can't go ghost... I think he was taken out of me..."

Oh crud, oh crud, oh crud...

"That doesn't matter," she insists, trying to take the calming and mature role in a room full of freaked out teenagers. "If he's doing all those things, he probably isn't in control, which means he's NOT you."

I have to make sure. I have to find out what's going on and how I can revert it. No way am I going to let anyone destroy everything I've been working so hard to accomplish and I'm _not _going back to being 'Public Enemy No. 1'. But I'm not sure they'll understand... "Guys, Amity Park was counting on me and now I let everyone down. We have to go find him. And _stop_ him."

I try standing up, but Tucker and Sam hold my arms to keep me on the bed. "Dude, are you crazy?" Tuck asks. "If you don't have any powers, how are you going to deal with a ghost like... like..."

"Like me?" I shoot back and struggle to get up again. "You seem to forget I'm also a Fenton. _And_ I know my ghost half better than anyone else."

"And you seem to forget you still have a fever!" Sam snaps.

I stop struggling and close my eyes for a moment. I don't want her to see me roll my eyes unless I want to continue with a bigger argument. "The fever's almost gone, Sam. Just like my powers, my alter ego, and everyone's trust," I add bitterly.

Ok, take another deep breath, Fenton. Don't start pushing your friends away.

She stares firmly at me in complete silence, my sister and our other friend looking at us almost expectantly. They all know I can't argue with her for too long, though. She's the one who's almost always smacking some sense into me. Suddenly, she takes her violet eyes from me and turns to grab her backpack. "He's gone, too, anyway," she voices softly. I sit straight and look at her with curiosity, trying to figure our what that means. "Your folks and even Valerie have tried chasing him but he's nowhere to be seen. Just... give it a rest until we come up with some sort of plan." She shifts her backpack from one arm to the other uncomfortably and finally shines her glazy eyes back on me. "Please?"

Sam knows I can't say no whenever she looks so worried and... _commanding_, I guess that would be the word for it. I still try to get up from my bed, slowly to keep the dizziness at bay, and grab her shoulders. "You know I can't stay here while half of me is out there doing who knows what. I can't let anyone get hurt, not when it's technically my fault. And I know that of all people _you_ understand that."

Jazz places a hand on my shoulder. "Sam's right, Danny. You need to rest and we need a plan. We wouldn't even know where to start looking now that he's hiding." I'm about to argue but she holds her finger up and does the bossy "big sister" face. "We get it, ok? This is just as big of a deal to us as it is to you. We do understand what's at stake. We know we have to do something. But you need to stop to think before you do something stupid."

I let out a tired sigh. It's easy for them to say when it's not their ghost half out there, but I know they're right. My hands drop from Sam's shoulders and I begrudgingly sit back on my bed. "So what now? We just go to sleep tonight and hope nothing bad happens?"

"Don't worry, Danny," Tucker pipes up with a hopeful look on his face. "I've been trying to triangulate all the places where a Phantom sighting has taken place in the last few hours to see if there's any pattern. I'll see if I can calibrate my PDA to your, I mean, _his_ signature to track him down."

"Then what?" I ask still not convinced.

"Well... hopefully we'll be ready by the time he shows up again," he finishes less confidently.

"So that means we should have our plan ready by then," I complete the idea.

My sister sits next to me and puts her hand on my forehead. I suddenly feel like the fragile little brother all over again. "You still have some fever. Maybe you should rest for a while."

I stare at her in disbelief. "Jazz, you can't seriously expect me to sleep with all of this going on. Please, don't treat me like I might break because I don't have super powers anymore. If you're not going to let me go out there, at least let me do something to keep my mind busy."

She turns to look at my friends. They silently agree to something and Sam immediately puts down her book bag again. I smile weakly at them as I realize they'll finally let me at least do something about this whole mess. Jazz turns to look at me again. "We can talk about that plan we need, if you want. But if you start feeling nauseous or anything-"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll avoid throwing up on your shoes," I supply jokingly. Jazz answers with a playful glare. My friends smile and I can see the tension has finally dissolved a little. Not that my own absolute terror has gone out for good, though. I'm still freaked out but I have to keep my cool in front of them. I won't let them see me like that.

"Where should we start?" Sam asks.

"Anything that doesn't involve reading about green puke all over again," I answer while making a face. They chuckle unaware that the nausea showing in my face is more realistic than they think.

* * *

For a town that has sort of gotten used to paranormal attacks on a daily basis and the occasional invasion every now and then, they sure had placed a lot of trust on a ghostly teen for the last year or so to solve those situations for them. Not that I'm not thankful for the vote of confidence, but now that they think Phantom is turning against them, they seem completely at a loss of what to do. With no one close to stopping or even finding him, they do whatever any rational town would've done: they shut (almost) everything down.

Casper High became one of the few exceptions. My parents argued with Principal Ishiyama about how this is exactly the perfect time to prepare and inform the students since they've been supporting Danny Phantom all along. They convinced her about setting a ghost shield around school to keep "the ectoplasmic pest" away from harming any of the kids attending, which would make our school even safer than staying at home with no way of keeping ghosts out.

In my case, coming to school wouldn't be so bad if it were any other ghost attacking Amity Park. But since we're talking about my other half, I'm terrified of the things my own classmates will say about Phantom. Although some of them might be in denial, I know they'll be mostly disappointed. One of the reactions I definitely don't want to see is Valerie's. After all the progress we've made working together and considering her warning about ending our truce if I tried anything funny, I'm guessing it's all over now. There's no way she'll be able to trust me again. I don't know if she'll even take it all out on Danny Fenton, the guy who as far as she knows was her enemy's friend.

With all this in mind, I wasn't really in the mood to face anyone at school today. The good thing about having been sent home two days ago and showing a slight fever last night is that I managed to convince my folks to leave me at home, with our own ghost shield on and the portal locked just to be safe. I still feel kinda sick, but my need to fix this problem is much stronger than any remaining discomfort from whatever Exorkizein did to me.

Luckily, my mom didn't stay with me today, convinced the house's protection system would keep me safely locked inside. Little does she know that I've managed to activate or deactivate anything inside our own house for some time now, which kinda helped me during the attack from the Guys in White. Aside from that, mom also left since she wanted to be at school where all the students would have plenty of questions about Phantom and she was more than glad to give them numerous reasons to distrust any ecto-menace. Having your peers probably talking bad about your alter ego is one thing. Having your parents trash it completely without a second thought is something entirely else.

I shake these thoughts away and prefer to focus on the plan we came up with last night, which partly involves figuring out what exactly happened to me.

We'll be doing some tests after school, checking for any remaining ectoplasm in my system. What triggered this was a simple idea stuck in our heads: why do I have my personality intact? Every time I've been split, in this or in alternate timelines, my human half keeps some personality traits while Phantom would keep others, hence the Super-Danny/Fun-Danny ordeal, which I'm not too eager to repeat. At all. Ever.

So now that my ghost half is free, it would make sense if we each got different parts of our personality, only that doesn't seem to be the case and it's really making me nervous. If that guy out there doesn't have my emotions, my thoughts or even my memories, what's to stop him from doing all that on his own? I shudder at the thought but can't keep the nagging feeling that he's not me anymore.

Anyway, back to the plan...

Tuck said he would try checking with his sources to identify who created the website. We think that person might have some clue on how to revert this or at least how to stop The Exterminator. Sam will be looking for more material to help us figure out more about this guy, in case we missed anything now that we got a little bit more insight from The Box Ghost and my current situation. Jazz is going to keep our parents busy in case we see Phantom again, which is going to be really tricky since I can't easily sneak out without my powers and they've been wanting to capture the ghost kid for a very long time.

And the big plan for whenever Phantom finally shows up? Well, let's just say that's one scenario that got us stuck. We know we have to trap him in the Fenton Thermos, no questions about that, but weakening him might be the risky part considering we don't have any powers other than my parents' inventions to stop him.

I sigh at this thought and click on the TV remote to surf the channels again. I want to check if there's any report on another Phantom sighting, but I haven't had any luck all morning. I've been even taking breaks to check if there's any additional weapon in the lab we can use to defeat me, erm, _him_ without pulverizing him or ripping him apart molecule by molecule.

I glance at the clock. It's a little past noon and there's still nothing on Phantom. I'm about to turn off the TV and get up from the couch, maybe get something to eat or check for updates on the Internet, when a breaking news report shows up. I straighten from my seat and turn the volume up.

"We interrupt this show to bring you the latest update on Phantom's coverage. Reports from Elmerton indicate another attack is taking place there right now. Local authorities have begun evacuating the neighborhood and are instructing residents to stay away from the area and look for any of the shelters set up nearby. They also warn anyone from outside of Elmerton to refrain from approaching the site. We'll keep informing on this attack as new information comes in." The screen goes back to the lame soap opera that was being shown before that.

Elmerton... did he plan on attacking Valerie's apartment? Mr. Gray must be at work and Val's probably at school. I don't know if that's a good thing or not, but I do know I have to do something and get there fast.

I grab the backpack I prepared for this case and head outside, not without deactivating the protection system mom put around the house this morning and locking the door behind me once I'm out. I know Elmerton is not that close but I have no other option than taking my scooter to get there. I would've taken the Specter Speeder if my parents hadn't put a new lock to stop us from using it without permission, all thanks to what happened a couple of months ago. I guess Danielle didn't get a chance to overshadow them enough to make them actually _forget_ about the incident.

Now that I'm out, I finally notice how lonely the streets are. Like a ghost town, no pun intended. Amity Park isn't that big to begin with, but with people being afraid of a rise in ghost attacks I guess they've all decided to stay safe inside their homes. Are people really that scared of me?

I try to shake those thoughts out of my head and continue on my way to the neighboring city. I just hope I can finish this before my parents or Valerie get back from school.

* * *

The chaos surrounding me is almost unbearable. I watch in stunned silence as another building catches fire and starts burning wildly. This can't be happening. It just... _can't_. I look around as people run away, the police officers guiding them to safer places while the firemen try to control the blaze. This is much worse than I thought.

From what I've been able to gather since I got here, exactly in Val's apartment building, Phantom fired a few shots to break the windows and apparently hit a gas tank, causing an explosion that consumed most of the floor and eventually spread to the rest of the floors and the building next to it. The only relief I get from this is the fact that everyone managed to get out safely, with nothing worse than a scratch, a small burn or a few bruises.

I run to an alley nearby to keep my scooter away from the damaged buildings; otherwise I'll be left without a ride back home. Not that I'm expecting to make it back in time anymore. As I head back to the scene, I realize there's not much I can actually do. There's no way I can help with this. With all the smoke and flying ashes almost covering everything, I can't even see where Phantom is. Is he even around? Still, I have to see if there's any other thing I can help with, now that the police is no longer paying attention to who enters or leaves the area.

"This is all the ghost kid's fault!" I hear a man yell as he hurries his family into a small car, ready to leave the scene. "He's gone mad!"

I feel a huge pang of guilt as I hear his words, which I know are completely true but not as simple as that. That's probably one of the worst parts in this whole situation: that I'm being blamed for something I didn't really do, or at least not exactly. Even if that _thing_ out there used to be a part of me, with this attack I'm definitely sure he can't be anything like me. Of course, thanks to my current situation I can't simply comfort everyone by saying that's not something Danny Phantom would do. They wouldn't believe me even if I told everyone the truth, anyway...

There's another explosion, which makes everyone flinch and raise their arms instinctively to protect themselves from the falling debris. Even I copy their reaction. Sure, I sort of got used to having things blowing up in my face, but I was able to deal with those situations thanks to my powers and even managed to constantly keep my stance no matter what. Now that I'm only human... I don't even feel half of that confidence.

My thoughts are interrupted again when I hear a rumbling sound. Turning my gaze upwards, I notice a part of the first building's wall is about to fall, but nobody really seems to be paying attention. Bystanders, the police, and even the firemen are more focused on the newest fire.

"Look out!" I yell at top of my lungs in time for some people to react and run immediately out of the way, most of them not knowing what they were supposed to be looking out for. I glance around and notice there's a small kid just standing there, below the building, apparently too shocked to react. Ghost powers or not, I gotta do something! I use every ounce of energy left in me and let the adrenaline guide me as I push the little boy out of the way, just mere inches from being crushed.

I get on my knees and turn to look at him, glad we were both able to make it from such a close call. "Are you all right?" I ask him. The kid, who doesn't look older than six, nods while he coughs and trembles. He looks on the verge of tears, but technically unscathed. I give him a reassuring smile and help him up, offering my arms to carry him to wherever his parents are. He clings to my neck and whimpers softly.

A woman runs towards us, yelling hysterically for "Tommy", the kid in my arms. Tommy immediately turns around yelling for his mom, who takes him from me and hugs him close. The woman looks at me and whispers a 'thank you' between sobs. I give her a weak smile and pat Tommy on the back. They run away a second later, following the crowd of fleeing people. It makes me wonder if maybe I should be doing the same, considering I haven't even found Phantom here.

I return my full attention to the chaos around me and finally realize how much my ghost half screwed up and I realize I wouldn't be able to defend myself, or rather him, anymore. Even if Exorkizein is behind all of this, in everyone's eyes this is all Danny Phantom's fault. He destroyed not only homes and other possessions, but also many lives in the process. Fortunately, there hasn't been any casualty yet. That doesn't mean there haven't been enough scares already.

As I try to come to terms with his responsibility in all of this, I realize a part of me still believed he had some of our conscience left. That somehow I would still be there, buried somewhere. That we've always been more 'Danny' than 'Phantom'. That he would be able to remember all of this if he saw me and realized how much he messed everything up.

A chuckle coming from above startles me and I'm finally able to see _him_, floating just a couple of feet away and landing in front of me. I hear panicked screams behind my back, probably from anyone who saw the ghost kid getting close. I tense when he sets his glowing red eyes on me. Wait a second... red? Why are my eyes red? _His_ eyes, I mean. Does that mean he's really under someone else's control?

"Well, I can't say I wanted all that mess to happen, but I can't complain with all the attention I'm getting," he muses out loud, with a deep voice I can hardly recognize as mine.

A chill runs down my spine not only because of his words, but because it finally hits me: I'm really not there anymore. I can't say the glint in his eyes is exactly evil, but I don't see any real trace of humanity there either. It's as if we've never been one being.

"Why are you doing this?" I manage to ask, still too shocked to move from where I'm standing.

The ghost grins smugly. "Sorry, but it's my turn to really shine, to show everyone what their hero is really made of."

I take a step back and reach for my backpack, only to realize it fell while I rescued that kid. Crud! What am I supposed to do now? Stall him. Do whatever you can, Fenton.

"This isn't the way to get everyone's attention, if that's what you really want," I yell at him firmly, wondering if I can bluff my way out of this.

"But hey, it's working, right?" he replies with the same amused tone, getting an inch closer to me.

I try to locate my backpack, the only thing that can help me confront him. There's something peeking from underneath the rubble of the fallen wall. I'll have to somehow make him turn around or circle him. I need my gear to at least have a chance against him.

Before I can move a single inch from where I'm standing, I hear Phantom yelp as a pink blast hits him on the side. I can't even react in time when something or someone grabs me from the arm and pulls me upwards, until I'm sitting on something in motion. As I turn around, I recognize a very familiar jet sled and the ghost huntress usually riding it. "You have a lot of explaining to do, Danny," Valerie says darkly. "Or should I say... _Phantom_?"


	7. Chapter 6: Fessing Up

**Note: **Hey, guys, thanks again for reading and following this story! I'm beginning to think I have a much better updating schedule now than back when I was a more active fanfic writer, heh heh... Anyway, thanks in advance for checking this chapter out.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Fessing Up**

I stare at Valerie while she flies both of us a couple of blocks away from the fiery disaster. "Phantom? How...? W-what are you talking about?" is all I can splutter, my mind now bombarded with questions.

Did she just really call me Phantom? Does this mean she knows? Did Vlad tell her? Did she figure it out on her own? How long has she known? What is she going to do to me? Will she even believe me if I tried explaining all this?

"Cut the act, Danny," she snaps. Immediately after, she drops me behind a dumpster in an alley. "I'll be asking the questions when I get back." Without another word from her, Val motions her glider back to the burning buildings, already preparing her cubic lasers, probably to hit Phantom.

I'm left dumbfounded. What the heck just happened?

She can't be that mad at me if she left me here, probably to stay safe, right? So what does she really know? Ugh... I'm not sure and I can't deal with this right now. Whatever's going on between us will have to wait. I still have to get back there and get my gear to hopefully capture Phantom. I could try helping her, but I'm guessing I'll be mostly trying to stop her from destroying _him_. Yeah, there's no chance for this to end well.

I dash out of the alley and head straight to where I last saw Phantom. By now I'm guessing he's fighting Val, so that might actually give me a chance to grab my things and stay away from the actual flames. I might even catch him off guard. When I get to the site, Val is no longer visible but I guess she's not far from here. Maybe she's flying around the damaged structures that are still standing. I also notice the firemen still trying to put out the fire, succeeding slowly but at least avoiding any other building from catching fire. I gotta hand it to those guys; they stood their ground and continued working even when the ghost responsible for this was floating a couple of feet away.

Fortunately, no other wall has crumbled to the ground either, so I manage to find my backpack without a problem, still partially stuck under some of the rubble. I just hope nothing got smashed in it. If I can at least find my thermos intact... Yes! Slightly battered, but still in one piece. Now to find Phantom...

"Where did he go?" I'm startled to hear Val's demanding voice behind me. I turn around and face her angry expression. She stares at the thermos in my hand. "Did you hide him in that thing?"

"No, I just came back to get this to help you," I try to explain, in hopes that she'll calm down a bit. Scratch what I said earlier: she's definitely mad. "He can't be too far. Did you try your tracker or whatever that suit comes with?"

She crosses her arms. "If you don't have him in that container-"

"Thermos," I automatically correct.

"Whatever! If he's not in there, he got away again."

Crud... That's apparently the same thing he did yesterday. He's probably staying away from all the ghost hunters. But why? Is he still weak or something? Does he need to recover from being separated from me? If he's avoiding the hunters, why would he trash Valerie's apartment? He said he didn't mean for all that to happen, so maybe he wanted to play some prank on her? I'm not sure, but I do know he didn't really look that evil to me. Maybe he's just fooling around without some bigger plan up his sleeve, which doesn't make him any less dangerous though. Still, whatever he's trying to do, I'm positive he didn't get that kind of personality from me.

"Are you even listening?"

I flinch when I realize I haven't really been paying attention to Val, the tone reminding me again of how she called me 'Phantom' a couple of minutes ago. "Sorry, I... kinda have a lot in my mind right now."

"Oh, trust me, you'll have a lot more in your mind when I'm done with you," Val mutters. I'm taken aback when she extends her hand and gives me a stern look. "Come on, we still need to talk."

I hesitate but end up taking her hand and hop on her board. She tells me to hold on as she takes us to a rooftop not far away, not uttering any other word on the way there. I'm still not sure what she thinks she found out or how, but maybe it's a good thing if she really does know I'm Phantom. There's no way I'd be able to convince anyone that we're the same person but we got separated by some crazy mojo pulled by an exorcist ghost. Although, who would want to admit _that_ when the ghost kid is destroying everything? My parents would look completely sane next to me.

As she retreats her sled after our landing, we stand nervously in front of each other. I'm not used to dealing with Valerie, the phantom slayer, while I'm only human. Even if she wasn't apparently caring if I knew about her side-job before, I'm guessing she's not comfortable with confronting me like this either, since she seems to hesitate with whatever she wants to say. If she really thinks I'm the spook she's been so bent on destroying until recently, I can't say I blame her either for being so tense.

Instead of facing me, though, Valerie walks to the edge of the rooftop and stares numbly at the smoke coming from the fire we left behind. She takes one hand in front of her face. I think I hear a faint sniffle and it dawns on me that she just lost her home and everything in it. Whether intended or not, Phantom took everything from her and her dad again. I can't even begin to imagine what's going on in her head. Oh, man...

"I'm sorry," is all I manage to say, not only as her friend but also as someone who feels partially responsible for all of this. If only I had made it in time. If only I had attacked Exorkizein sooner. If only I had asked for her help to begin with...

"Did you do this?" she snaps and turns to look at me furiously. "Was this your fault?"

The rage in her voice makes me instinctively take a step back. Even with her faceplate on, I can notice the tears brimming in her eyes, along with all the pain and anger in them. I don't even know what to say. "No," I reply softly, not believing it completely myself.

"I'm not buying it," she responds coldly. I should've somehow expected it. She narrows her gaze and folds her arms. "Talk. Now."

Talk. Just like that. Sure, as if it were really that simple. What am I supposed to say? I'm not even sure about what she knows. And her aggressive stance isn't helping either since she's making me even more nervous. With the way she's glaring daggers at me, I'm not sure telling her the truth is a good idea if she doesn't really know what my real connection to Phantom is, even if she did call me by that name. Or did she really call me that? Maybe I just heard it all wrong. I have to find some other thing to say, see if I can't figure out what she knows and what to tell her. I don't even know what she's expecting me to explain, anyway.

"Why aren't you at school?" I ask in a calm tone, tentatively avoiding the confrontation and trying to get her our of her 'huntress' stance.

"Why aren't _you _at home? Weren't you supposed to be sick or something?" she shoots back, but at least not as aggressively as before. Ok, maybe this is something we can start from, talking about how we both got here.

I rub the back of my neck. "I _was_ kinda sick. I was at home when I heard, uh, Phantom was attacking this part of town and thought I could help fighting him." No lying whatsoever. I should be proud of myself, actually.

"Really? All on your own." Something in her dry tone and unimpressed look tells me she's not believing a word I said.

I meet her eyes with a firmer look. "Yeah, all the way from Fenton Works, on my scooter, in case you're curious. I actually just got here." I stare behind her, at the remaining smoke in the distance, the reminder of all the damage still hanging heavy over my head. "I was already too late."

Even if she still looks mad, Val's hard scowl softens a little. She avoids looking at me and stays silent for a few seconds. "I came rushing over here as soon as I heard about it after one of my classes," she says quietly. "I couldn't make it in time, either."

I close my eyes and shake my head. "This is all messed up," I mutter under my breath.

"I know, Danny," her low voice makes me wince as I realize that's not the sort of comment she needs to hear right now. She needs a friend, someone to support her, maybe just to tell her everything will really be all right.

I shift nervously. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound-"

"No," she interrupts. I stare silently at her, already confused, when she suddenly takes her helmet off. She discreetly wipes away her tears and then goes back to the determined stance she had earlier. Her green eyes stare at me directly in the eye. "I _know_, Danny," she stresses.

I stare at her blankly, realizing she's going back to the original topic but still not sure of what I should say. "What _do_ you know?" I cautiously ask.

She sighs and stares at the helmet on her hands. "Pretty much all of it. I know you're half ghost. Danny _Phantom_, huh? Kinda hard to ignore all the signs once you start paying attention to the smallest details and piece everything together."

My brain kind of stopped working when the words 'half ghost' came out of her mouth. One thing is to think I'm overshadowed; another to think I got some spooky powers. But knowing exactly what I am? I guess it kinda makes sense if she found that out about Vlad. She could've put two and two together if she figured out who I am. The question is... "How?"

She shrugs nonchalantly. Yeah, as if finding out my secret was no big deal at all. "You changed right in front of my eyes when you fainted in the park. Everything else clicked after that."

Wait, she has known for that long and she's just telling me _now?_ That would explain why she's been so nervous around me or why she didn't keep attacking my alter ego after that. It would explain why the sudden change of heart and why she even offered the truce. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

"Why? So you could lie again to me in my face? Just like you did all those months while I was chasing you and almost _killing_ you?" Her hurt tone is a huge slap on the face. She lets those words hang there for a second. "I needed to make sure what kind of person you are, Danny. It's not exactly _nice _to find out someone you considered a friend wasn't even being honest."

"Honest?" I spit the word out. Somehow I don't think she even knows what that really means when you're a half-ghost freak with a price on your head. "You wanted me to tell you I was the same guy you hated so much you couldn't even go out with me anymore? You wanted me to tell you my biggest secret when you couldn't even tell me yours?"

Valerie scoffs. "You're pinning this on me? How was I supposed to know you weren't just some stupid spook? You not knowing my secret didn't put either of usin any danger. Me not knowing yours did!"

That was enough to shut me up. I stare at the ground not wanting to see her in the eye. She's right, but I couldn't be sure she wouldn't still go after me if she found out. When she called things off with me, I realized her need for payback against Phantom outweighed anything good there was between us. How could I have been so sure it wouldn't be the same if I told her? It was painful, it was frustrating, but I knew I wouldn't be able to change things with the truth. That's why I begun to reconsider everything after the truce.

"You thought I wouldn't understand, didn't you?" her question pulls me once again out of my thoughts.

"Apparently you don't," I admit bitterly. "You were blaming me about this whole thing just a minute ago."

"I didn't see any other ghost around the fire. Did you? 'Phantom' looked pretty amused with it."

I'm this close to pulling my hair out. This is exactly what I was hoping to avoid if I ever told her. How could I have forgotten about it when I stupidly considered asking her for help just a couple of days ago?

"Maybe you didn't see any other _ghost_. But did you happen to notice _I_ was around? Saving that kid and trying to confront the ghost responsible?" I know she's not dense, but why is it so hard for her to see past her misconceptions about me?

"That's why I want to know what's going on!" Val yells.

We stand in silence, as if daring each other to say or do something to make the heated argument start all over again. The weird thing about all of this is she's mad at me but she's not trying to torture me in the million ways I thought she would if she ever found out about my secret. She did say she wanted to talk. If she knows I'm Danny Phantom and she knows he was responsible for the fire, she should be at least aiming a gun at Fenton. But she's not. She attacked Phantom and rescued me. Sure, she's been giving me a piece of her mind since we got here, but she hasn't threatened me even once. Maybe Val really is trying to make sense of whatever's going on. If she kept this from me for that long, she deserves more credit than any of my friends or I have given her. She deserves an honest answer. The truth.

I soften my posture and walk towards the ledge, sitting down once I reach it. Val imitates my actions but remains standing next to me. I try to think of the best way to explain this. "I'm not Danny Phantom anymore."

Her confused look tells me she wasn't expecting that kind of answer. "What's that supposed to mean?"

I'm still trying to cope with all of this, but here I am spilling the beans to the girl who had me as her main target a few weeks ago. "You remember about The Exterminator?" She nods slowly. "Well, apparently he _exorcised_ the ghost out of me. We've been separated since yesterday, you know, after our talk. I still don't know if Phantom's being controlled or-"

"Or if he's evil on his own," she blurts out.

"No!" I reply quickly. Part of me doesn't want to think of that possibility, but another part _knows _that can't be the case. At least not exactly. "We're the same person, but I'm not evil or anything close to what that _thing_ out there is. Maybe whatever The Exterminator did took out the raw energy out of me, with no conscience or emotions whatsoever. I don't know, that's what I'm trying to figure out."

Val takes a second to let it all sink in. "Ok, so you're just you. Just human?"

I place my head in my hands. I don't think she realizes how vulnerable the idea alone makes me feel. "Yeah, pretty much."

"And you still came all the way over here to fight him?"

Her surprised tone brings a weak smile to my lips. "Hey, I'm the hero, remember? It's not like I'd let anyone get hurt, much less because of him."

"But you wouldn't stand a chance alone against him. You could get seriously hurt. Or worse," she says as she seats next to me.

I roll my eyes. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Come on, Danny. You couldn't even beat half of the class in the P.E. laps two days ago. How do you expect to confront a ghost as strong as him?"

I don't know how to respond to Valerie's question, maybe because my mind is still trying to process the weirdness of the whole situation. Val and I sitting together, ex-ghost and ghost huntress talking openly about our secrets and the double lives we lead. And to think things were so tense just minutes before.

"I don't know," I answer honestly. "I just know I have to do something, or at least try."

"And what about this Exterminator guy?"

"I don't know, either."

Silence strikes again, but with everything said I don't feel it as uncomfortable as before. Now it's more like we're finally getting close to an understanding, coming to terms with what's going on between us. Still, I need to give closure to some of our issues. "I'm sorry for ruining everything. You know, starting with your dad's job."

A gloved hand rests on mine. "Unless everything you told me when we got out of Vlad's lab was a total lie, I know that wasn't your fault."

"I thought you said you couldn't trust me back then," I say with a small smile, remembering the long talk back home. But now that I think about it, she didn't even know about my secret at the time.

"Yeah, well, it's going to take some time to really get there, to be honest," Val replies. "I have no reason to trust ghosts yet, Danny. I mean... just look at Vlad."

You gotta be kidding me...

I gape at her baffled. Apparently we take one step forward and two steps back. "So just because Vlad is some crazed-up fruit-loop you think I can turn out to be anything like him?"

"No! It's not like that. I just- Look, just because you're a good guy that doesn't mean your ghost half is necessarily good. Case in point," she says while facing the blaze in the distance.

It's kind of a huge blow to the gut to have someone still believe you could be evil even after knowing the truth. "This might be hard to believe," I begin trying to keep my cool, "but I had a run in with Vlad in a different timeline where he didn't get ghost powers. Vlad was still a jerk in that reality and did whatever it took to get what he wanted. You see where I'm going with this?"

The huntress shrugs. "Ok, so Vlad is a jerk anyway. I haven't met any friendly ghosts during any of my battles. No offense, Danny."

I weigh my options. "How about this... when all of this is over, and I get my powers back, we'll go into the Ghost Zone to meet some of my friends." I notice her skeptical look. "What, you don't believe I've met good ghosts out there?"

"Fine, we'll go visit your buddies," she begrudgingly accepts and I finally realize she's only comfortable with anything I say or propose because she knows there's no "putrid ectoplasm" inside me manipulating every thought or action. Maybe earning her trust will be hard, but it might get better if I break all those barriers and misconceptions as Danny Fenton.

We sit in silence, looking at the city skyline, at the dying fire that left smoke and ashes still floating aimlessly in the air. "So what do we do now?"

She doesn't turn to look at me. "Right now, I guess I should go find my dad. I want to help with that spook and make The Exterminator pay for this, but I gotta figure out what we're going to do now that we don't even have our crummy apartment anymore."

I turn to look at her defeated expression. I guess she was sort of expecting something like this to happen someday, with the way she's taking this. "You could stay with us, if you want. I'm sure my folks will be more than glad to have you over."

And it's true. Heck, if dad knew she was the Red Huntress, he would even consider her his new sidekick. I kinda shudder at the thought, since I figure it would be the same thing with me when I finally tell them what I do on my spare and not-so-spare time.

"I-I don't know, Danny," she replies hesitantly. "I'm not sure my dad would love the idea. He... sort of knows about you and Vlad."

"What!?" I yelp. _That_ I definitely didn't see coming. "You told your _dad?_"

Seriously? Valerie knowing is one thing, but... her dad? The tough security guy who told me to keep my ghostly weirdness away from his daughter?

And apparently Valerie knows how bad the situation is since she cringes at my expression. "I know, I know. I probably shouldn't have told him anything. You don't know how paranoid he's been lately since he knows I've been going to school with the ghost kid I was so bent on destroying."

"No kidding."

"But," she continues, "I was losing my mind, Danny. You know how hectic everything was that day. But do you know how hard it is to find out you've been lied to by two of the most important people in your life? To realize your mentor and benefactor manipulated you to do his dirty work? Or that you almost became a murderer by attacking one of your few friends?"

I guess I got nothing to say to that. I've been lucky to have my two best friends and my very understanding (though overbearing) sister close almost since this all started. They've been there for me either to hear me out, guide me, or smack some sense into me when I need it the most. Val didn't have any of that. Until now, I mean. I just hope she realizes that.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to overreact." I place a hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to go alone with this again. You know that, right?"

The warm smile on her lips is all the answer I need. "Thanks, Danny."

"Unless, of course, I have to worry about your dad coming after me with an ecto-gun," I add making a face. We both laugh, breaking any tension there was left between us.

It kinda makes me wonder if things could've been a lot easier all along if we had both been honest when we became friends...

* * *

After making sure Val would at least consider my offer, the trip back home took a little longer than I thought, mostly due to the fear of being caught off guard by Phantom. Fortunately, no ghostly incident got in the way and I think I at least made it in time before my parents got home.

As I park my scooter next to the shed, I belatedly realize the Fenton GAV is already parked in front of the house. I mentally groan, already bracing myself for my parents' reactions when I open the door. Sure enough, as soon as I place a foot inside, the yelling begins...

"Where in the world have you been, young man? Do you have any idea how worried we were?" mom's voice booms loudly from the living room as she gets up from the couch, followed closely by dad, who just finished hanging up the phone.

They both look at me expectantly with crossed arms. "I'm sorry," I sheepishly say. "Valerie's home got attacked by a ghost and I wanted to see if she was okay." No way am I going to say out loud my ghost half did the damage. Especially not in front of my parents.

Their expressions seem to soften only a little. Even though they've always been out of the loop with part of my social or 'romantic' life, both of them know Val and I were sort of dating a few months ago. Well, at first they thought it was Sam, which made it kinda awkward, until I explained who Valerie was. They seemed slightly disappointed, not sure why.

"Just tell us where to go and we'll get rid of that nasty specter for good!" dad voices loudly.

"Now, Jack, before we get ready for battle, we need to have a little word with Danny first," mom reminds him with a serious tone, which means I'm pretty much grounded.

"Oh, sweet cheeks, you know we can punish Danny later. But this spook could get away before you can even say 'rotten sack of ectoplasm'!"

"Uh, it's all right, dad," I say, reluctantly focusing their attention on me. "He's already gone."

"Awwww," dad exclaims disappointed.

"Valerie lost her home, though," I quickly add. "I was actually wondering if she and her dad could stay with us until they find a new place."

They both turn to look at each other, silently discussing something. "Oh, sweetie, of course we would love to help them. That's very thoughtful of you," mom answers in a more loving tone. "We'll have to tell Vlad we won't have the guest room available, but I'm sure he can very well afford a hotel room. Anyway, you can call your friend and tell her she's welcome to stay with us for as long as they need."

My mind freezes on its tracks... "Wait, what was that about Vlad?"

"Oh, that's right! Vladdy is coming over!" dad announces happily, oblivious to my paling expression.

"What!? Why?"

"He'll be tomorrow's guest speaker for the Ghost Awareness Week. I'm sure everyone at your school will be thrilled to have a renowned billionaire coming over," mom explains.

Sure. Thrilled.

This can't be good. Not good at all. Actually, I don't think it can get any worse...

"You're still getting grounded, by the way," dad adds.

Can't I ever catch a break?

* * *

**Note:** As far as giving closure to old projects goes, I'm glad to announce this story is halfway done. Thanks for reading, if you made it this far :)


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